Love and War
by The Gothic.Princess 101
Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the cocky new kid, Richard Grayson. Rob/Rae
1. The Broken Roth Family

Hey everyone, thank you for venturing to my story. This was originally going to be a Halloween fic, but instead, I came up with a better plot, and only one chapter will really focus on Halloween. It just started out as a plot bunny hopping around in my head, and I decided to create something with it. Hope you like it!

A/N: Nobody has super powers with the exception of one character.

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

Love and War

_Chapter One_:_**The Broken Roth Family**_

* * *

Normal POV

Love. Love has no desire but to fulfill itself. To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night. To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving.

Some say love is when you can be your true self with someone, and you only want to be your true self because of them.

Some say that true love is a mirage; seek it anyway, for all else is surely desert.

Love is like a friendship caught on fire. In the beginning a flame, very pretty, often hot and fierce, but still only light flickering. As love grows older, out hearts mature and our love becomes as coals, deep-burning and unquenchable.

Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination.

But some say love is nothing, to be _loved _is something.

And love, love is like war, easy to begin, but hard to stop.

* * *

Raven's POV

The sun's blinding rays peeked through the window of every house on Willow's Creek rd., and awakened every resident, including me. I closed my eyes tighter, trying to savor my last few seconds of sleep, but the light just got brighter, and brighter, and brighter. So, I opened my amethyst eyes, indolently folded back my sheets and blankets, and sluggishly got out of bed.

I loathe mornings, especially Monday mornings. Which is why today was the worst morning of the week.

I am the third oldest child of the four Roth children. I'm sixteen years old, and a junior at Gotham City High. I was given a name after the rare White Raven from my father, Trevor Roth. I was born with porcelain pale skin, jet black hair, and bright violet eyes, that were very similar to the amethyst crystal, and this is why I would receive my name.

I am Raven Roth, and this is my story of that of love and war.

* * *

Normal POV

She sauntered out into the hallway bathroom, and on her way, she knocked loudly on the door next to hers.

"Phoenix, get up!" Raven yelled, not to loudly, seeing as, she didn't want to disturb every member in the house.

Raven's second oldest brother and her absolute best friend was known as Phoenix. He, unlike Raven, was named by his mother, which was odd because he is now a splitting image of his father. His gentle jade green eyes, pure black hair that naturally stood up, and pale skin, would be why he was called Phoenix after the mythical, majestic bird.

Raven stepped into the bathroom, and after locking the door behind her, she proceeded with her morning routine.

She looked up at myself in the mirror, and when she saw her three chunky blonde highlights on the left side of her part, she agreed with her siblings. She did have a certain resemblance to a skunk. A smile crept onto her lips and she rolled my eyes as she reminisced to herself.

After Raven finished in the bathroom, she continued priming for school. She went back into her room, and dressed in a black button up shirt-dress, black combat boots, and black fishnet arm warmers. Black is her favorite color, even though she never mentioned it to anybody, it wasn't ambiguous.

Following the scent of fresh coffee, Raven made her way down the stairs.

When she reached the bottom of the staircase, she laid eyes on her oldest brother. He was lounging in one of the four kitchen chairs, his feet up on the table, and his face hidden behind the Gotham City Times, as usual.

"Good morning, Eagle," Raven greeted him, whilst pouring herself a cup of coffee.

He lowered the newspaper, revealing his hazel brown eyes, "Morning, Raven," his simple greeting was monotone, as usual, and then he went back to reading his newspaper.

Raven's twenty-two year old and eldest brother was named Eagle by his father. He was given a name after the distant Black Eagle because of his appearance and the fact that he cried for a mere minute after he was born. Eagle came into the world with deathly pale skin, jet black hair, and nearly autumn colored eyes.

"Anything interesting in the paper today?" Raven inquired, sitting in her designated seat across from him.

She eyed her brother strangely. He'd always "creeped her out" but never frightened her. She knew he meant no harm to her and the others. But he, as a person, was questionable. No one ever knew what he was up to because he was stoic. Raven couldn't recall a time in the passed eight years when she'd seen her brother feeling emotion, with the exception of anger. It gave her an eerie feeling whenever she thought about it. And often she dwelled over the thought that Eagle could (if he hadn't already) kill with a straight face.

"Well," you guys are getting a new student today," Eagle replied in his stern but emotionless voice, sipping his coffee. He was dressed in typical Eagle attire: a black leather jacket, baggy jeans, chained wallet, a white tee, and combat boots. And his jet black hair was the same as everyday: riding his eyebrows, and swooping to the right. Altogether, the eldest brother is very good looking. He mostly took after his mother, where as, Phoenix, was a splitting image of their father when his father was his age, nineteen.

Raven was a little shocked, but didn't really show it behind her expressionless face, "They put that in the newspaper?"

"Well, this guy is the son of one of the most wealthiest men in Gotham," Eagle explained taking a sip of his coffee, "And he just got kicked out of his private school."

"And his name is?" Raven queried.

Eagle opened his mouth to answer, but was interrupted when their little sister came bouncing down the stairs.

"Good morning everyone!" she sang, a smile plastered on her face.

"Good morning Phoebe," Eagle and Raven said together.

Phoebe Roth, like Phoenix, was given her name by her mother. Being born with features unlike her siblings and a bubbly personality as a newborn is why she would be named after the Eastern Phoebe. The youngest child in the Roth family and perhaps the most mysterious was Phoebe. She was born with hair of a glossy ash brown, topaz blue eyes, and very light creamy skin; where these features came from would be mystery.

"Well today is going to be the bestest day of my entire third grade year," Phoebe announced grabbing a banana before sitting on the end of the four sided table, to the left of Eagle and Raven. Her lengthy brown hair was pulled up into two velvet pigtails, that fell well past her shoulders, and were tied with light blue ribbons. She was wearing a yellow dress, with a striped blue long sleeved shirt underneath, and light blue tights.

"What's happening this time, Phoebe?" Eagle questioned.

They both knew that everyday was the "bestest day ever" for Phoebe, since the simplest things pleased her. She had such an innocent voice and, to a certain extent, the "cute factor", that it was hard to be angry or annoyed with her whenever they received some of her sassy backtalk.

"Because today is the first day of planning our school's Halloween festival," Phoebe explained whilst peeling her banana.

"I forgot Halloween is coming up," Raven admitted.

"How could you forget?" Phoebe inquired, "Halloween is the same day as your birthday."

"I don't know Phoebe," Raven told her, "It's not that important to me."

"Yeah," Eagle chimed in, "The day I believe that is the day a magical seahorse slides down from the sky on a rainbow."

Raven rolled her eyes at his sarcastic insult, knowing that he was kidding since things are typically always harmonized in our house. But, very infrequently, they do argue. Mostly Eagle and Raven, seeing as they are the most alike. Sometimes Phoenix and Eagle, because of Eagle's somewhat insensitive ways. But Raven would have to admit that Phoenix is the epitome of a peace keeper in the house, since he doesn't like the fighting an fussing, and is always stopping it from happening.

Their brother Phoenix came jogging downstairs (togged up in jeans and a red GCU hoodie) and into the kitchen with the rest of us. Phoenix had always been very handsome, and usually always had girls falling for him. You'd think he'd always keep a girl at his side, but no. Phoenix is such a gentlemen, that he refuses to date based on physical attraction. Raven personally believed that he was put on this earth to taunt all the girls and have all the boys envy him.

"Good one, Eagle," Phoenix commented in his velvet voice. His short jet black hair was naturally standing up in the front and his jade green eyes gleamed with happiness and sincerity, as usual.

"Phoenix!" Phoebe jumped into his arms.

"Hey (1.a) Feebs," Phoenix spun her around playfully and she giggled and laughed joyfully.

"Good morning, Phoenix," Raven greeted him.

"Good morning, my dearest sister Raven," he kissed the top of her head like he always did.

"Morning, Eagle," Phoenix grabbed an apple out of the fridge before sitting in the chair on the opposite end of Phoebe and to the right of Eagle and Raven. He tossed the apple up and down a few times before actually taking a bite out of it.

Phoebe began to babble on about her school's activities, Phoenix listened politely with a smile on his face, and Eagle was lost in his newspaper.

She began to think about their family. Their family was made up of four very different people coming together as one. Eagle was the strong-willed and distant leader. Phoenix being the kindhearted but also bold harmonizer. Herself, Raven, being the logistic, intellect and the epitome of the crafty mastermind. And Phoebe was the innocent, sassy, and lovable changeling. But all of them being witty, seeing as, all of them were the children of Trevor and Arella Roth.

Their parents; the missing links in their family. Their father, Trevor, enlisted in the Navy SEALS right after high school, and is now a commanding officer. He's been in and out of their lives since their birth, and missed very important events in their lives, including Eagle's and Phoenix's graduations. He hasn't been seen by his children in two years, but they send letters often, rarely receiving he would return soon, if he returned at all.

And their mother, Arella, passed away from Leuchaemia four years ago, and Eagle has taken care of them since then. There was no cure for Arella, therefore, no hope. The death of Arella is a very fragile and untouched subject in their house; they just, don't mention it and pretend as if nothing ever happened.

"Eagle," Raven said, bringing herself out of her thoughts, "Who's the new student?"

"Oh right," Eagle remembered their earlier conversation, "His name is Richard Grayson."

"Bruce Wayne's son?" Phoenix inquired.

Eagle nodded.

"Who's Bruce Wayne?" Raven queried.

"The CEO of Wayne Enterprises," Eagle replied.

_So he's the rich guy type? _Raven thought, _We'll see._

"Alright guys," Phoenix interrupted her thoughts, "Come on, time to leave."

He stood up, and Phoebe and Raven did the same. Phoenix grabbed the keys to his black GMC Denali, that his father gave him last year, off the key tree that sat on the counter.

"Later," Eagle said, monotonously.

"See you," Phoenix, Phoebe, and Raven said simultaneously as they made their way out the door.

"Vic, Gar!" Phoebe shouted when Phoenix closed the door behind us. Phoenix and Raven walked down the ten steps on the stoop and Phoebe hopped down them two at a time.

For as long as any of the Roth children could remember, they had lived there on Willow's Creek rd., which consisted of somewhat modern townhouses. The Roth's house had more of a dark brown stone, and the stoop was straight down in front of the door and it had ten steps and a black railing. But their neighborhood was the most beautiful during the autumn, like it is now. The streets were scattered with leaves of red, yellow, orange, and brown. The trees had changed into their golden fall colors. And, of course, the air was cool and dry.

"PB (1.b)!" Vic exclaimed as the little girl ran gleefully up to them.

"Feebster (1.c)!" Gar shouted as he and Vic played around with Phoebe.

Garfield Logan, like Raven, was a junior at Gotham City High, but unlike Raven, his birthday had already passed for that school year, and he was seventeen. He was the first best friend she'd ever had, and she met him the day he moved in next door nearly seven years ago...

_Raven sat on her stoop, tears cascading down her cheeks, and her heart broken into a million pieces._

_Her father had just left for the airport an hour prior to this moment; he'd been called back to California after only being home with his family for a week. Raven loved her father more than anything, and it kills her soul to see him walk away, knowing he won't be back for months or even years._

_Garfield Logan had just moved into this new neighborhood, and was putting out empty boxes for the garbage truck, when he saw a young girl, about his age, siting in the middle of the stoop on the house next to his, crying her eyes out._

_Being the caring and kind person that Gar is, he went over to her to see what was wrong._

_"Hi," he smiled, "You mind if I sit?"_

_Raven looked up and meet his forest green gaze, "Go ahead," she sniffed._

_Raven shifted over and Gar positioned himself next to her on the railed stoop._

_"Are you okay?" he inquired._

_"Do I look okay?" Raven replied, wiping away tears._

_"What's wrong, if you don't mind my asking?_

_"Actually, I do mind," Raven refused, "I don't know you and you don't know me. I don't just go __around dumping my troubles on strangers you know."_

_"Alright, I'm Garfield Logan," he introduced himself, "And you are..?"_

_"Raven," she said, tears still streaming down her porcelain face._

_"Now we're not strangers anymore," Gar pointed out, "Now what's wrong?"_

_"Fine," Raven gave in,"My father is a Navy SEAL, and he just left again and he won't be back for a __long time, if he even comes back."_

_"Don't be so negative," Gar advised her, "Only think positive thoughts and hope for the best. And __besides, your dad brings your family honor for fighting for America. And I personally believe that __war families are really strong and bonded together."_

_"You do make a good point," Raven's tears stopped falling and a friendly smile crept onto her lips._

_"Another citizen's problem is solved by the wonderful and magnificent Gar," he bragged._

_"You're funny," Raven simply smiled, "And weird, and annoying, but I like you."_

Gar and Vic stopped playing around with Phoebe and they all climbed into the SUV. Raven sat up front with Phoenix, and Phoebe sat in the back in the middle of Gar and Vic, as they were all accustomed to.

"Good morning dudes," Gar greeted everyone.

"Good morning everybody," Vic greeted them as well.

Vic, Gar and Raven, is a junior at GCH, and shared a birthday with Gar so he, too, was seventeen. Vic's absolute and unquestionable best friend, is most definitely Gar, but Raven was other best friend. She met him while she was tweve and he being thirteen when he moved in next to Gar four years ago. And their friendship started in an eccentric way...

_It was the year of Raven's mother's death, and her siblings, who were all trying to make the best of the holidays, were out buying a Christmas tree, decorations, food and so on. But Raven, who was still was suffering from the death of her mother six months prior to then, wasn't ready to break the holiday tradition of buying all the things for Christmas with her mother. So she stayed home and decided to clean the house while they were out._

_She started with her room, then Phoenix's room, then Phoebe's room (Eagle doesn't allow anyone __in his room, so she respected his wishes), the bathroom, the living room, and lastly, the kitchen. __After gathering the trash bags from all the trashcans in the house, she combined them all into one __big bag._

_Raven grabbed her jacket and lugged the big trash bag over her shoulder outside and onto the icy __slick pavement._

_She kept her balance well, trying immensely hard not to fall and humiliate herself._

_But, while slinging the bag from behind her shoulder, she tossed it a little to hard, and the ground __was a little too slick, and fell head first in the trashcan behind it. __She desperately struggled to push herself up and out of the foul smelling trashcan, but her __attempts worked against her. The trashcan fell over on it's side (with her inside it) and began __rapidly rolling down the street._

_Victor Stone was conveniently about to go for a nice winter's day jog, when he saw a trashcan __tumbling full blast down the street, with two feet hanging out of the end._

_He sprinted after it._

_It didn't take long for the skillful and already star athlete to catch her._

_He grabbed hold onto the spinning trashcan, and pulled Raven out, and helped her onto her feet._

_She was filthily covered in disgusting garbage, her face was smeared with coffee grains and __eggshells that were in the bottom of the trashcan. And she was dizzy, so Victor held onto her so __that she wouldn't fall over._

_"Thanks," Raven panted._

_"You're welcome," his honey brown eyes eyed her like she was crazy, "I've never seen anybody __try to break the sound barrier in a trashcan."_

_Raven smiled, so did he, and he grabbed up the handle on the trashcan._

_"I'm Raven," Raven introduced herself, "Raven Roth, I live up the street."_

_"I'm Victor Stone," he introduced himself, he wheeled the trashcan as they __walked back up the street to their houses, "And what were you doing, exactly?"_

_"I'm not known for how poise I am," Raven hinted, "I fell over inside it."_

_"Do these kinds of things happen often to you?" he inquired._

_"Well, if you hang around me long enough," Raven replied, "You might find yourself in some __peculiar situations."_

_"I like an adventure, so I guess I will," he smiled._

_"Yeah, you will," she smiled back, "And thanks again for helping me out of that mess," she flicked __a piece of garbage off her shoulder._

_"No problem, and you can call me Vic," he said._

"Good morning," Phoenix and Raven said simultaneously.

"Little Rae," Vic is the only one she allowed to ever call her that, "What are you gonna do for your birthday?"

"I dunno," she replied, "Probably take advantage of my being able to stroll the streets at night with a Scythe and not go to jail."

Gar trembled, "Sometimes you scare me, Raven."

"Ditto," Vic agreed.

"Kidding, guys, kidding," she rolled her eyes, and looked out the window.

"I know, we should plan a surprise party for you," Gar brainstormed.

This set off an alarm in her head. Everyone knew that she hated surprises. Whether it be a party or hiding behind a door to scare her, she didn't like it. To summarize: she hated the unexpected.

"No," she flat out refused, "I hate surprises. And, guys, don't plan a surprise party in front of the person you're throwing it for."

"Nice going Gar," Vic nudged him, "You tipped her off."

She rolled my eyes at their simple minded sarcastic humor, and they pulled into the parking lot of GCH.

The American flag was being raised up high by a couple of ninth graders, the parking lot security guard was strolling around on foot, and cars were parked in a forty-five° angle all across the large parking lot.

Everyone began unbuckling their seatbelts when Phoenix parked the car.

"See you guys later," Raven disembarked from the car, "I've got to talk to my physics teacher before the first bell rings."

"Later Raven," Gar and Vic said at the same time as they exited from the vehicle.

"Have fun," Phoenix got out of the car, and took Phoebe's hand.

"Thanks Phoenix," Vic said, "I owe you."

"You owe me big time, Vic," Phoenix pointed out, but he didn't mind because he was good friends with Vic and Gar.

"You want us to take Feebster to the lower school?" Gar, who didn't mind taking Phoebe to her school at all, offered.

"Nah," Phoenix replied, "I'll do it, it's no hassle. Just get to class."

"Alright dude," Vic, Phoenix, and Gar three way knuckle-touched.

"Later PB," Vic began walking away.

"Have a great time at school, Feebster," Gar followed behind Vic.

"C'mon Feebs," Phoenix lifted Phoebe onto his back and took her to her elementary school.

* * *

"Yo, Gar," Vic stopped right in his tracks on the parking lot, "Check that out," he pointed to a car on the parking lot.

Gar followed Vic's finger, and laid eyes on a candy red Maserati Granturismo that had never been there before.

"Dude," Gar held his clenched fist up in front of his mouth, a typical Gar pose, "That's totally wicked!"

"Who's is that?" Vic asked himself and he and Gar approached the car that only existed in their dreams.

"It's mine," a velvet male voice claimed from behind them.

They both turned on their heels simultaneously, and caught sight of a teenage boy, whom they had never seen before, with tan skin, spiky jet black hair, and stormy blue eyes.

"This is totally sweet!" Gar exclaimed.

"Yeah, what he said," Vic agreed.

"Thanks," the unidentified boy leaned casually against the hood of the car, his arms folded across his chest, "I'm Rich Grayson."

"I'm Gar, and this is Vic," Gar introduced himself and his friend.

"You new here?" Vic inquired.

"Yeah," Rich replied, "It's my first day. Hopefully the people at this school are better than the ones at my old school."

"How where the people at your old school?" Gar asked.

"Let's just say, the girls were easy, and the guys were pansies," Rich answered, sporting a smirk.

"Well GCH students aren't like that," Vic told him, "So nothing to worry about."

"What about the sports teams? Are they any good?" Rich inquired.

"District champs three years in a row for football, five years for basketball, two for baseball, four for soccer, and two for swim," Vic replied, "Are you thinking about joining any? Cause I can easily talk to the coaches, seeing as I've been captain of varsity football since my Freshman year."

"Actually, I was thinking about joining soccer," Rich answered, "I was a pretty good player at my old school."

"No worries, bro," Gar interrupted Vic, "Vic can talk to the coach if you let us ride in your car to the premier of Brad Pitt's new movie."

Vic and Rich eyed Gar suspiciously, "Brad Pitt movie?" Vic questioned.

"Yeah," Gar replied, "When all the girls can't find him, they'll settle for us. You pickin' up what I'm puttin' out?"

"We get enough girls Gar. There's no need to go chasing them around," Vic rolled his eyes, and Rich chuckled.

"Holy...," Rich gawked at something across the parking lot, "Who is that?"

Vic and Gar turned to see what was in Rich's line of vision, and they laid eyes on Raven. But Rich gazed upon a beautiful porcelain doll clad in sexy black attire. In all his years he'd never seen something so beautiful, so alluring. She was so enticing, with a plain look plastered on her face, and strange features. Never, never, had he seen anything like her before, and he instantly wanted her.

"Oh, that's Raven," Gar told him, "But don't even waste your time. She's untouchable."

Rich snapped out of his daze, "No girl is untouchable for me."

"Except for Raven," Vic told him, "Let's just say she's...difficult."

"So she's stuck up and snooty?" Rich inquired.

"Nah man," Gar said, "She's just far from reaching. If there's one girl that everyone wants and can't have, it's Raven." Gar leaned closer and whispered, "And by the way, she's got two older brothers that are way creepy."

"There won't be a reason to have them in this," Rich explained, "Because she'll fall for me, we'll be happy, and everything will work out. I always get what I want. Can you call her over here?"

Vic cuffed his hands around his mouth, "Little Rae! C'mover here and meet our friend Rich!"

* * *

Raven turned on her heels when she heard Vic's voice shouting her nickname.

When she faced the source of the sound, her eyes took in the sight before her. Raven saw Vic motioning for her to come over, she saw Gar with that look on his face that he thought was cool, and she saw an unidentified boy leaning against a candy red Maserati Granturismo (the car really caught her attention).

Two words soared through her mind, _"Richard Grayson." _The guy Eagle told her about this morning. The rich guy. The arrogant, stuck up, selfish, rich guy.

She shook her head no to Vic, and continued walking as though nothing had just happened.

"Why not!" Gar shouted, and she ignored him and proceeded walking to her physics class.

* * *

Normal POV

_So she's one of those girls,_ Rich thought, _It's just gonna take a little while longer to get her._

"Now that I think about it," Vic told Rich, "She did say she had to talk to her physics teacher before the first bell rings."

"Yeah bro," Gar nudged him encouragingly, "She's probably just in a hurry and doesn't want to waste any time. Or she just doesn't want to talk to you. And I didn't want to say this, but, I told you so. Nobody can have Raven, you're wasting your time."

"She'll come around," Rich said cockily, "They always do. When can I get the chance to talk to her?"

Gar handed Rich a piece of paper, "That's her locker number, she goes to it everyday between lunch and the fifth bell."

"How do you know that?" Vic inquired, "You keepin' tabs on little Rae?"

"Raven's smokin', of course I keep tabs on her," Gar replied, and Vic rolled his eyes.

Everyone who knew Victor Stone and Garfield Logan, knew that they were ladies men. But Raven only saw them as reckless players. She knew that Gar would always have undying attraction to her, only physical attraction. But Raven only saw Gar, and Vic as well, as a friend. They were more like her brothers than anything. Even though they annoyed her to death every sometimes and cause epic chaos every once in a while, she had to admit that she loved them. And when it came down to it, they were both there for her in the beginning, and would be there until the very end.

* * *

The bell ending lunch sounded, and Raven said goodbye to Tara Markov, Vic, and Gar before making her way to her locker, as she was accustomed to doing.

At the beginning of the school year, Tara was the new kid and was in desperate need of friends. Gar, seeing her as an easy hot blonde, invited her into their group. But Raven, who had befriended the girl as well and figured that she liked her, steered her clear of Gar, warning her of his ways. And this is the incident that nearly ruined their friendship, but their sibling like love was stronger than their dispute.

Raven opened her locker, grabbed her backpack, slung one strap over her shoulder, and slammed her locker shut. And that's when she saw the same guy from that morning (Richard Grayson) standing there, leaning casually against the lockers with his hands in his pockets, and a stupid smirk on his face, like he'd been there the entire time, waiting on her.

"Hey," he said to her, "So about this morning, I take it that you were in a hurry..."

"I wasn't in a hurry," Raven interrupted him, "I just didn't want to talk to you."

"Maybe because you didn't know who I was," he suggested cockily, "I'm Richard Grayson from the Wayne-Grayson family. Does Wayne Enterprises ring a bell?"

She immediately hated this kid. He's a typical rich guy, but with an even worse twist. He's cocky and overconfident. So she had the strong urge to slap him and tell him off as well, but seeing as she is a lady, she would just have to settle her urges with rejection.

"Yes it rings a bell," she rolled her eyes, "And I honestly don't care who you are, where you come from, or what you think you will gain from this conversation. So leave me alone."

"Well I know who you are, Raven," he uses her name and she planned on ripping Vic and Gar's heads off for telling him, "And I want to know more about you."

"Well too bad, because you won't," she began to walk away, but his next words regained her attention.

"Look at me," he demands, "How can you deny me?"he lifted up his shirt, revealing a toned tan body with abs, and Raven wanted to kick him in where it hurts.

He pulled his shirt back down and Raven took in his face. It was then that she realized he was very attractive. Tan skin, stormy blue eyes, spiky jet black hair, a very boyish cute smile, and hot body. But looks aren't everything. And in his case, his looks are no where near as good as his personality. As far as Raven was concerned, he was a big jerk that uses his money, flattery, and his looks to get girls. But she could never be bought, and she refused to give in just because somebody was a little good looking.

"Or, maybe if I showed you a little taste of the good life," he pulled out a roll of money, a roll of all hundred dollar bills to be exact, "You'd consider going to dinner with me," he attempted to coax her into doing what he wanted.

"I don't do _your _type," she sassed and glowered at him.

"And what exactly is that?" he inquired, his stormy blue eyes fixed upon her.

She moved so close to him that their noses were almost touching, "Rich," she said, then turned on her heels and walked away with no intention of coming back, and left him to ponder over her reasons.

* * *

End Chapter

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And as for some of the quotes included, the authors are: Kahlil Gibran, Terri Guillemets, Robert Brault, Voltaire, and Bruce Lee.

(1.a) Feebs- Phoenix's nickname for Phoebe

(1.b) PB- Vic's nickname for Phoebe

(1.c) Feebster- Gar's nickname for Phoebe

Sorry if I have the tendency to ramble or explain too much or too little. And you'll learn more about my OCs as the story progresses.

Until next time, Cya!

-GothicPrincess

_Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get, it's what you are expected to give — which is everything._

_~ Unknown_


	2. The Incident

Hey guys, thanks for the reviews. After seeing some of the suggestions, I added some things to the first chapter, and corrected some things, so feel free to reread it. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity. _

_~Henry Van Dyke_

Chapter two: _**The Incident**_

_

* * *

_Normal POV

_"He's so dead when I see him,"_ Raven thought, and she began to plan Rich's brutal death.

Phoenix looked over at Raven from the driver's seat and saw a very malicious smile on her lips as she stared viciously out the window.

"Are you alright Raven?" he inquired, glancing from the road over to her.

Raven snapped out of her sinister thoughts at the sound of his voice, "Oh, I'm fine," she scoffed, nervously, "I wasn't planning to kill anybody cause...cause if that's what you thought, let me tell you, you were way off," the suspicious little teen fidgeted in her seat.

Phoenix gave her a very skeptical expression, quirking his eyebrow, "Anything you want to talk about there, Raven?"

"No," Raven chuckled nervously, "You're acting like I'm some sort of homicidal maniac or something."

Phoenix reluctantly accepted her answer and focused his attention back onto the road.

"So Ravester," Gar joked from the backseat, "How did everything go with Rich yesterday?"

"Once more, Garfield," she grimaced through clenched teeth, "And you'll be tasting the sole of my shoe."

He shrunk down into his seat as they pulled into the parking lot of Gotham City High.

"And for the record, I loathe Richard Grayson."

"Why do you hate him?" Phoenix inquired whilst parking the car.

"Because he is a jerk," Raven replied.

"So," Vic chimed in, "He's cool."

"Just because he has money and gets girls, doesn't make him cool,Victor_,_" Raven rolled her eyes.

Vic and Gar exchanged looks, "Yeah it does," they countered simultaneously and knuckle touched.

Phoenix and Raven both rolled their eyes as they disembarked from the car.

Phoenix took Phoebe's hand and lead her to the lower level school, and Raven scanned across the parking lot for a Maserati Granturismo.

Vic nudged Raven as he leaned against the truck, one hand in his pocket and the other on the strap of his backpack, "Looking for Rich?"

She looked up and glared at him.

"Relax Rae, I'm just kidding. You said you hated the kid and I believe you. It's just fun to tease you."

"It won't be when you're trying to get my foot out of your behind," Raven threatened, her eyes narrowed.

"You made your point," he turned to leave, "Catch you later at lunch."

She smirked, victorious for a second time.

Gar followed behind Vic, "Peace, Dark Vader."

She continued her search for the candy red car when they all were gone, and her search was successful. She sighted the car near the back of the parking lot.

Sporting a grimace and a glare, she stormed over to it.

Rich was standing outside his car, leaned over through the open driver's side door, gathering his soccer things, when Raven confronted him. He noticed her approaching him, and stopped what h ewas doing.

He stood up straight, smirking.

"Good morning doll face," he shut the door and leaned casually against it, his arms folded across his chest.

"Call me that again and you'll be _wishing_ you were in hell," Raven threatened, her eyes narrowed as she glared at the teen in front of her.

"Don't be like that, bunny Raven," his smirk grew wider.

"Drop the smirk, Grayson, before I get rid of it myself," her eyes, if possible, narrowed even more.

"You only came over here to see it," he quirked his eyebrow, taunting Raven.

"You bastard, this is why I came over here," Raven threw loose money into his face, "Next time you want to sneak your dirty money into my pocket, don't."

"Seriously, what hole did you crawl out of?" Rich affronted, very nervy.

"You conceited little twit; You're "charm" may have worked on every other girl, but they're far from appealing to me. So forget it, jerk," Raven turned sharply on her heels, leaving.

Rich squatted down and began gathering up his money, "Why do I even bother, you're impossible," he ranted, purposely loud enough for Raven to hear.

Raven stopped in her tracks, "I'm not _impossible_, I'm just...complicated," she said over her shoulder before making her way into the school building.

* * *

Raven purchased her usual lunch tray, and sauntered across the large cafeteria. She she skimmed the room, seeing that Tara had been joined by another girl, one whom she'd never met before. A gorgeous girl with large emerald green eyes, fiery red hair flowing down her back, and skin so tan it was almost orange, but it fit her, she was truly beautiful; Raven had to acknowledge that.

Sighing, Raven took a seat on the opposite side of the table from them.

"Hey Raven," the platinum blond greeted her with that signature bubbly personality.

"Hi Tara," Raven said, "Who's your friend?" she asked, putting on a feign smile.

"Oh, Raven, this is Kori," Tara introduced her, "Kori Anders. She just moved her from Kauai, isn't that cool?" Tara asked, her crystal blue eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Cooler than a whore's heart, Tara," Raven agreed, dripping with sarcasm.

Tara giggled, "Anyways, I've been showing her around. And Kori, this is Raven."

Raven murmured "Hi," and Kori muttered, "How do you do?" Neither one of them made eye contact; it was evident that they weren't going to get along.

Raven already resented her, but she didn't show it on her face, which was more than she could say for Kori.

Kori rolled her eyes, wanting to leave but not having any other friends to sit with.

"The party has arrived," Vic announced as he and Gar joined the girls.

"Nice timing," Raven whispered to Vic, "I can't be left alone with these girls. I've heard those damn pretties can smell fear."

Vic chuckled, "I don't blame you."

"So, I'm Garfield Logan, hold for applause," he bragged, stifling a giggle from Kori.

"Kori," she introduced herself, "Kori Anders."

"I'm Vic," he faked a yawn, flexing his muscles, "Victor Stone, also known as, Caption, as in, the big buff boss."

Kori giggled yet again, "Nice to meet you."

"Yeah, I just lost my appetite," Raven pushed her tray away and sustained her stomach, "Forever."

While Vic and Gar continued to flirt with the redheaded beauty, Raven looked over at the door.

What she saw appalled her. Rich stood in the entrance to the cafeteria, his stormy blue eyes scanning the perimeter.

"Excuse me," Raven stated, and while staring at the floor, she pushed herself back from the table and stood. She quickly walked off, leaving behind her group, and hurriedly fled from the room.

Raven's flashy wardrobe was spotted with ease, and a very determined soccer player trailed after her.

"Raven," he called her name.

She looked back and quickened her pace as she made her way out the door, but he followed her there as well.

She broke into a sprint, seeing that he was gaining on her, but he chased after her, matching her speed.

"Raven, I need to talk to you," his voice became louder as he rapidly caught up to her.

She halted in her tracks, seeing no purpose in attempting to make a get away. It was obvious that the Varsity athlete would catch her, sooner or later.

She turned acutely on her heels, and he was directly behind her, merely a foot's distance between them. "What? What do you want!" Raven demanded forcefully.

"A chance," he replied, his voice stern but a normal tone, "Just give me a chance."

"No," Raven refused, sporting a scowl, "Get a few friends and get a life, you self-centered, egotistical, prissy, little spoiled brat!"

"You don't even know me," he pointed out, "You're being judgem-"

"I don't _**WANT**_ to know you!" she screamed, and turned to leave, more pissed than ever.

She hoped that the nimrod would realize that her words were from her cold heart, and just give up and get out of her life. She'd barely made it out of his reach before he causde her to come to a sharp, halting stop.

"Why are you being such a bitch?" he yelled.

All in one motion, Raven turned back around, and stormed up to the taller teen. She took a swift, skillful swing and socked him directly in the right eye with her notorious left fist.

He cupped his hand over his eye. Raven knew it stung, that's what her victims always yelled about her slender little fist, to her amusement, but this time, she was entirely too pissed to enjoy his pain.

"What the hell, Raven?" he ranted, pointing an accusing finger at her, "What the fuck is your problem?"

Raven would have told him her problem, and his many problems, but she wanted to escape before he was able to catch her, so attempted to promptly leave the scene, but a new voice ceased her, and kept her from doing so.

"Hey you!" Coach Igleheart shouted, "Get over here!"

Raven winced at the booming voice, _"Oh crap, I'm in for it."_

* * *

Raven looked through the window of the principal's office. She saw Phoenix with his signature coaxing smile plastered on as he talked with his hands while negotiating with principal Gordon. Since Phoenix was a star student when he attended Raven's school and the principal and teachers adored him, he was always able to get her off the hook with less punishment.

Raven then nervously took a glimpse at the seemingly calm man next to her. She saw that his leg was folded over the other, that pose that was the only thing she could remember from the previous times she'd gotten into trouble. The pose that meant she was going to be chewed out by Eagle.

Raven sighed, "_Boy, I'm going to get an earful when we get home," _she thought, _"All because of that little cry baby Rich."_

Luckily for him, Rich wasn't in the office, because, the way Raven saw it, he was too busy being a cowardice wuss about a little nudge in the eye.

She scoffed.

If he's such a tough guy, then why is he sitting in the nurses office holding an icepack to his eye. He's such a pansy; he can't even take a punch from a girl.

"Thanks a lot, Principal Gordon," Phoenix interrupted her thoughts as he exited the principal's office.

He gave his siblings a look that said "let's get the hell out of here" and Eagle and Raven followed him out the door.

"So what happened?" Raven inquired once they were on the parking lot.

"You're suspended for the rest of the day," Phoenix replied, giving her a disappointed look.

"Come on Phoenix, don't do this to me," Raven begged, "You didn't hear what that "momma's boy" said to me."

"Whatever he said isn't worth my time or yours," Eagle spoke for the first time since he received a phone call from the school.

Raven didn't say anything back to him, she knew it would only make matters worse if she tried to defend herself.

Luckily for her, Eagle walked ahead and left Phoenix and Raven behind.

"What did he say to you?" Phoenix whispered, not wanting Eagle to hear.

"He said I was being a...female dog," Raven hinted, "Because I wouldn't give him a chance."

"We'll talk later, Raven," he put his arm around Raven's shoulder and gave her a squeeze, "I've got shotgun." He jogged up to the car and joined their brother in Eagle's black GMC Sierra, but on the passenger's side.

* * *

Raven stormed up to her room, her anger flaring after the anticipated altercation with Eagle.

"Go to your room!" he shouted from downstairs, the piercing presence of anger in his voice.

"I'm already in my room!" Raven yelled back and slammed her bedroom door. A picture fell outside her door from the wall and smashed into pieces, but she was too provoked to care.

"He's so insensitive," the teen huffed as she pounced down on her bed, her arms folded across her chest and her signature pissed off look plastered on her face.

Eagle isn't the most considerate being on the planet and neither is Raven. Which is why they both say splenetic things that they don't really mean during controversy. They are very much alike; he speaks his mind and so does she. No matter who it will hurt or what the effects will be, they don't hold it in.

The burning sensation of tears penetrated her eyes, but she held them back.

"No Raven," she clenched her teeth together, and her voice was uneven, "You're not going to cry. Crying is for wimps."

Raven cried for the last time when her mother died. She told herself nothing after that horrible incident was worth crying for. Nothing. Nothing could ever measure up to the pain she endured from losing her mother.

She forcefully blinked her tears away, and lay her head down on her pillow, bringing her knees up to her chest.

"Mom," she breathed.

She longed to have her mother still with her; even if only for a day, a night, or an hour, any amount of time would do. She just wanted to see her mother one more time, one last time, and tell her how much she loved and cared about her; how much she still does.

She fell asleep on her pillow, tears unshed, and the way they would always remain.

* * *

Later on that night, around two am, Phoenix crept into Raven's room. Tiptoeing and unheard. He

weightlessly drifted over to her bed, and shook her arm slightly.

"Raven, wake up," he whispered.

"UGH!" Raven shouted, one coercive reflex and she had successfully punched the intruder in the balls.

"HHOO!" Phoenix exclaimed, enduring extreme pain from the impact and collapsed on the floor.

Raven screeched shrilly, and Eagle came dashing into the room, a baseball bat in his hands, "WHAT IS IT! WHAT HAPPENED!" Eagle hollered, demanding a reply, raising the bat over his shoulder, ready to swing.

"Ssshhh," Phoenix groaned from the floor, "It's me."

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN HERE!" Raven demanded.

"Bleeding internally," he grumbled.

"Go to bed," Eagle drawled monotonously and slammed Raven's bedroom door shut.

"What is it Phoenix?" she asked, her voice annoyed.

His head popped up next to her bed, "Nothing, everything is fine."

"Well what do you want?"

At this point, she basically had a pretty good idea of what Phoenix was doing in her room. He always chose a peculiar time to talk with her.

"I was wondering if you alright? You know, from that argument with Eagle?" he replied, staying on the floor, still in pain from the blow.

"And why do you always pick the oddest times to come and talk to me?" Raven inquired.

"To give you time to think about it, so that way you'll know exactly how you feel about something."

"Well I feel absolutely nothing, I'm over it. Now good night," she turned her head away from him, and pulled her blanket up to her chin.

"I'm sorry about Eagle," Phoenix apologized, "You know how insensitive he his, and we both know that he doesn't mean the things he says."

Not only did Raven hear the words that her brother was saying, but she listened to them. No matter how upset she was, Phoenix seemed to always know the solution to her problems and how to make her feel better.

Raven turned her head and faced Phoenix once more; she was met with a warm, welcoming smile.

"Why are you apologizing?" Raven inquired.

"Because Eagle's not brave," Phoenix simply said.

Raven looked at him quizzically, "Excuse me?"

"Eagle. He's not brave," Phoenix repeated.

"It's too early in the morning for me to understand your vague answers, Phoenix," Raven pointed out.

"It doesn't take courage to walk away and leave everything be, you only have to be sick and tired of trying to do that. But it takes courage to admit to your mistakes and accept your consequences. No matter what the situation is, Raven, don't ever go on without giving it a try or a chance."

He stumbled onto his feet, leaned over and kissed her forehead.

"Pain, pain, pain," he complained, limping from her room.

Raven slightly chuckled before being overtaken by sleep.

* * *

By the end of school the next day, Raven hadn't seen Rich, he hadn't tried anything. She figured he was over her; She _hoped_ he was over her.

She spotted Phoenix's truck on the parking lot and on her way over to it, she looked over and saw Kori sitting on the hood of a white Honda Accord, sending her daggers from across the parking lot.

Being in the fucked up mood she was in, Raven couldn't contain herself. Normally she wouldn't go looking for trouble, but as of now, she didn't care.

"What the hell is your problem?" Raven demanded as she approached her, "I just met you and I'm already sick of you. And in case you haven't heard yet, I'm the last person you want to have problems with here."

"Me? In my opinion, you're the one with the problem," Kori replied, her tone normal.

"Excuse me?" Raven quirked an eyebrow and folded her arms across her chest; Raven had to give Kori credit for having the gall to say something back to her. Normally people (male or female) would cower in fear when they received a death glare from Raven, let alone words.

"You were the one with three guys at one time," Kori explained, rolling her eyes.

"What in the seven hells are you talking about?"

"I saw you this morning getting out of the same car as three other guys," Kori replied.

"Yeah, my crazy best friends, Vic and Gar, and my older brother, Phoenix," Raven clarified smugly.

"So you're not fooling around with any of them?" Kori double checked, and Raven wanted to throw up.

"Gross," Raven answered, and received a giggle from Kori, "And why did you care anyway?"

"Because in my family, the women respect themselves and the guys are gentlemen," Kori replied,

"So I didn't really want to get involved with a girl like that."

"You sure there wasn't another reason?" Raven asked suspiciously.

"Well one of them was cute, and I was...sort of...jealous," Kori blushed as she admitted the real reason as to why she didn't like Raven.

"Which one?" Raven inquired, curious.

"The older one," Kori replied.

"I know girls that have been barking up that tree for years," Raven said, "The future doesn't look bright."

"It doesn't matter," she said, climbing down from the hood of her car, "I have a boyfriend, but thanks for looking out for me. We sort of got off to a rough start, don't you think?"

"No I wouldn't say-"

"Raven, we damn pretties can also smell lies," Kori countered, smirking.

Raven chuckled, "Start over?"

"Kori," she stuck her hand out, "Kori Anders."

"Raven Roth," she shook Kori's hand.

"You up for lunch tomorrow?" Kori offered.

"Sounds smelly and distasteful, but if you're there, I'm there," they exchanged smiles.

"Toodle-oo, Raven," Kori gave her a stereotypical airhead impression.

"Au Revoir, Kori," Raven smirked.

* * *

End chapter

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-GothicPrincess

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Love withers under constraints: its very essence is liberty: it is compatible neither with obedience, jealousy, nor fear: it is there most pure, perfect, and unlimited where its votaries live in confidence, equality and unreserve.

~ Percy Bysshe Shelley


	3. The Reunification

Okay, so it's been a while. Sorry, I've been really busy with school and such, but no worries, because here I am with another chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired._

_~Robert Frost_

_Chapter three: **The Reunification**_

* * *

Normal POV

"I still don't believe you hit the guy, Raven," Gar violently shook his head. He and Vic were both stretched out across the living room floor, of the Roth's home, on their stomachs, searching through their phones.

"Well believe it," Eagle chimed in from the kitchen table. He sat with his feet resting on the corner of the table, his coffee cup at hand, and his face hidden behind the Gotham City Times, as usual. But today, like every other Saturday, his girlfriend was lounging in the chair she pulled up right next to him, her chin resting on his shoulder as she, too, read his newspaper. "It's true."

"He's right," Raven acknowledged. Cuddled up in the recliner next to the fireplace and her two best friends, Raven was also reading an Edgar Allan Poe book while listening to the conversations going on around her. "And I had the punishment, and Rich still has the scar to prove it."

Stretched out and relaxing on the couch, Phoenix yawned lazily. "Raven you're really letting up off your game. You didn't even draw blood this time."

Raven rolled her eyes and went back to her book, The Murder in the Rue Morgue.

"I think Rich is cool," Vic announced, looking up from his phone, "And I'm not just saying that because he's going to get me and Gar into a party at the Playboy mansion." He and Gar knuckle-touched and laughed.

"Disgusting," Raven breathed under her breath, not looking up from her book, and unheard.

"What's Playboy mansion?" Phoebe inquired in her innocent voice, joining Vic and Gar on the floor, her doll at hand.

Phoenix, Raven, and Eagle all shot them a "do it and you die" look, and they got the message.

"A house filled with pleasure," Gar replied, laughing nervously. He and Vic were terrified to ever upset one of the Roths -let alone all of them at the same time- that was suicidal. And never -unless they were tired of living- would they do that.

Phoebe, satisfied with his answer, went back to brushing her doll's hair, Raven continued reading and so did Eagle and Danielle, and Phoenix continued to doze off.

The absence of Roth children's parents often made them lonely, and their very close friends were aware of this. Which is why they come over and visit any time they liked, invited or not. But the Roth's don't seem to mind; it helps keep their minds off of their parents. And they all worry about Phoebe; she never really knew her mother, and often blamed herself for her mother's death, even though she's been informed that what happened had nothing to do with her.

"Dude," Vic whispered to Gar, "Did you see that hot new red head?" Being the ladies men that they are, Vic and Gar always kept an eye out for a new hottie on campus. Mostly Gar -who loved dating the "beauty queen" types- and had a mental notebook in his mind with all sorts of information on every girl whom he deemed to be an eight and above on a scale of 1-10.

Raven had always thought of Gar to be sort of a stalker, and the fact that she knew he had a crush on her, never helped her suspicions that he follows her around all day.

Raven, able to hear him and noting that he was referring to Kori, glanced up from her book, and eavesdropped on their conversation.

"See her? I've all ready got her number, sucker," Gar waved a fraction of a piece of paper in his face, "I was just about to put it in my phone right now."

Raven leaned over and snatched the paper out of his hand, "How did you get this?"

"We talked, I gave her my number, and she gave me hers," Gar shrugged, sporting a smug smile.

Raven balled the paper up and threw it at his chest, "She gave you your number back."

"What?" Gar read the paper again, "Crap."

"Besides, Gar, she has a boyfriend," Raven pointed out as she retreated back to her book.

"So, that's never a problem," Gar held his hand up to Vic for a high-5 and was gladly granted one.

"There's a thing called an STD, bro," Phoenix chimed.

"And morals," Raven added while reading, "And honesty."

"Raven's right, guys," Phoenix, with his eyes still closed, joined in, "You really should take your relationships more seriously."

"Are you kidding me?" Eagle chimed in, "Vic and Gar would stick themselves in anything with a pulse."

Vic and Gar rolled their eyes at the offered advice and insult, and went back to their phones.

Gar's phone began ringing away with his favorite song.

"Who is that this early?" Phoenix inquired, basically asleep.

"I dunno," Gar held the phone up to his ear as he pressed the green button, "Sup."

Vic watched as Gar's face transformed into a guilty grin. He held his hand over the speaker and whispered, "It's Kori dude," before going back to his conversation.

"Uh-huh. Uh-huh," Gar's smile slowly began to fade, and Raven looked up, "Okay. Alright. Here she is."

Gar looked over at Raven, glaring, "It's for you," he pouted.

Raven took the phone, sort of glad that Kori basically turned him down.

"Hello," she answered. She could hear Kori sobbing into the phone, and was a little worried. Even though she just meet Kori, she cared.

"Raven," Kori began, her voice broken and hidden by sobs, "I...I."

"What is it, Kori?" Raven inquired, "What happened?"

Everyone looked up from what they were doing and at Raven, curiosity present in the colorful audience of their eyes.

"I'm sorry I cc...called you, b...bbut I don't re...really know an...anybody else here, aa..and mm...my other aren't..t aroundd," Kori stammered.

"It's fine, Kori," Raven said, "Now what is it?" Raven's heart was racing, and she was practically begging for Kori to tell her what happened before she had a panic attack.

"I'm in...you...your driveway," Kori replied.

"Here I come," Raven hung up the phone, tossed it to Gar, and shut her book. Eager to help her new friend, Raven hopped up from the recliner and made her way out the door, with only her winter pajamas and socks on.

Raven saw the same white Honda Accord from a few days prior, parked next to their car in her driveway, and Kori's sobs became louder and louder as she approached the car, but Kori was not visible.

"Wha?...Where?" Raven asked herself as she looked around for where the sound was coming from.

She listened closer and pinpointed where the sound was. She followed it to the back of the car, and there was Kori, sitting on the ground leaning against the bumper of her car, her knees pulled up to her chest, and her face buried in her hands, bawling.

Raven calmly neared the teen and positioned herself next to her on the ground. Raven gently placed her hand on Kori's back and caressed it.

Raven didn't say anything; she waited until Kori was ready to talk to her.

"Raven," a little while later, Kori lifted her head and faced Raven.

A wave of pure pity flew over Raven when she saw Kori's extremely saddened face. Kori's face was dampened and enveloped in tears, and her eyes were red and filled with tears yet to be shed.

"Raven," she choked out, "I...my.."

Raven waited patiently for Kori to finish her sentence.

"M..myy...yyboy..yfri..enn..dd...che..eattedd...onn...mm..me," Kori sputtered and broke out into sobs, burying her face in her hands.

Raven embraced her in a caring hug, and, after analyzing Kori's words, Raven understood what she said and felt extremely sorry for her.

"What happened?" Raven whispered while comforting her.

"I found...out that he got...mmy best f..ffriend pregnant," Kori stammered.

"What did you do?" Raven inquired.

Kori pulled back, "What else was I...I supposed to do? I dumped him."

"Alright then, so fuck him," Raven tried to make eye contact with her, but Kori wouldn't cooperate, "You don't need him. You're beautiful, Kori, and you deserve better."

"He was my...everything," Kori hugged her knees and stared forward into space.

"No, Kori, he wasn't, trust me," Raven told her, "No one, except for God, can ever be your everything. And I know that from experience."

Kori turned her head and meet Raven's intense amethyst gaze. "Then...w..wwhy do I feel like I did?" Kori whispered.

"Because you were betrayed, and hurt, and lied to by somebody you thought you loved," Raven explained, her voice a sympathetic whisper, "But you'll get over it and move on."

Kori had never meet a person like Raven before. The things Raven said were actually worth something because she knew that Raven meant them. There's always a catch to a person that makes them not worth while. But this time, Kori didn't see one. And she knew this was the start of a great friendship.

"I'm glad I have you to help me, Raven," Kori embraced the teen next to her, "You're a true friend."

A small smile crept onto Raven's lips and she heard her front door open, followed by the small thudding sound of footsteps that she knew all too well.

Phoenix appeared in front of the two teenage girls, facing the redhead one whom he'd perceived to be Kori. Behind his back he held his hanky, embroidered with his first and last name, which he courteously held out to the girl covered in tears.

Raven knew that the side of Phoenix in which she called his "fatherly instinctive side" was coming out.

Kori gratefully took it, a sweet smile on her lips showing her gratitude. She immediately recognized the boy from a few days prior. It was Raven's older brother, whom she was immediately attracted to. She wasn't the type to believe in love at first sight -at least not for herself- that only existed in romance flicks or novels. And -as a result from her recent experience- she wasn't sure that love even existed. The only thing that ever made sparks fly, is physical attraction, not love.

"Deluding his treasure whilst seeking another is merely the mediocre," Phoenix wisely told the girl who's emerald eyes sparkled with tears.

"Phoenix, nobody understands your "fortune cookie talk"," Raven pointed out.

"I do," Kori claimed whilst dabbing her eyes with the hanky, "He says that only a man who's new to love will want you and another girl."

It shocked the siblings that a girl like Kori -an airhead beauty queen- would understand Phoenix's witty advice. But it was clear now that there's more to everything than meets the eye.

"Well it's nice to have someone who I won't have to explain things to," Phoenix said, holding out both his hands to assist his sister and his newest friend, "I'm Phoenix by the way."

"Kori," she introduced herself as she and Raven took a different hand, "Kori Anders. Pleased to meet your acquaintance."

"As am I," Phoenix let his hands fall into his pockets when both girls were on their feet. Was that the tinge of the scarlet of a blush at brink he saw forming on Kori's cheeks?

"Now that we all know each other, let's get out of this cold weather," Raven gestured for them to walk up the driveway. She ignored the blush forming on Kori's cheeks.

The air from the living room enveloped the three in a cloud of warmth -which was a great relief from the freezing air outside. Raven -unaware of the eyes of her family and friends, save for Gar, Vic, and Phoenix, eying Kori strangely- lay back down in the recliner she was previously in.

"Earth to Raven," Phoenix snapped in front of her face, "Aren't you going introduced your friend?"

Raven looked around at everybody and her eyes meet the audience of colorful orbs. "Everybody, this is Kori. She's my friends from school. Kori," Raven pointed to each person as she named them, "That's my oldest brother Eagle and his girlfriend Danielle. My second oldest brother Phoenix, who you already know. That's my youngest sister Phoebe. And my best friends Vic and Gar from school."

"Hi everybody," Kori smiled as she joined Vic and Gar -whom were vigorously motioning for her- and Phoebe on the carpet. Danielle -taking notice in the beauty of the newest member- also joined them.

"Is this natural?" Danielle inquired, while running her hands through Kori's silky waterfall of fiery red hair that cascaded down her back.

"Yes," Kori replied, "And so is my tan. I'm from Kauai on my dad's side and Jump City on my mom's side. I got the red hair from her and the skin from him and seventeen years on the beach in Kauai."

"So you're a senior?" Vic asked.

"Yes, and an exchange student," Kori replied, "And a Merit Scholar, former captain of drill team, and I was on the volleyball team for awhile."

Kori gave Raven a wink that -somehow- only Phoenix saw, but he let it slide.

"Oh ho ho Vic," Gar nudged him, "We've got a "sport-off". Raven and Kori are both volleyball chicks. I think we should see who's better at it."

"I haven't played volleyball since that mortifying incident in grade seven, dunderhead," Raven rolled her eyes.

"In this corner," Vic cuffed his hands around his mouth and made his voice like an announcer's, "At five pounds and seven ounces. She's got one hell of a left hand and a love to kick ass. She's mighty, she's tough, she's creepy, she's psycho-"

"She has two brother's that can kick your butt," Phoenix added in the same voice.

"It's the wonderful, mystifying, Raven Roth!" Vic finished.

"And in this corner," Gar introduced, mimicking Vic's voice, "Weighing in at thirty-two pounds. She's got big green eyes, -that go great with mine- and an undying love for guys with the name of Gar. She's beautiful, she's hot, she's sexy, and she's got a killer smile. It's the gorgeous, glamorous, Kori!"

Vic and Gar, after they were finished laughing, looked up to see every member of the Roth family, and Danielle and Kori, holding a volleyball with an evil glint in their eyes.

Vic and Gar, now holding each other, gulped simultaneously, and laughed nervously, "Right?"

"Jokes right," Gar had a nervous sweat drop dripping down his face.

"Yeah, right," Vic joined him, also with a nervous sweat drop streaming off his face.

Raven and Kori -who were in the front of the group and the closest to the two- looked at each other then back at Vic and Gar and smirked. They tossed their volleyballs slowly up and down and shook their heads no simultaneously.

* * *

Meanwhile at the Wayne-Grayson mansion

Rich sat at his dining room table for ten, eating his luxurious breakfast alone, as usual. His father was already at work, his twin brother, Riley, was away at his private school, and his dad's fiancee, Lori, was about the mansion, ignoring him, typical.

His father was a workaholic, like his father before him, and his father before him, and so on. Rich hardly ever spent time with him; it was basically like he was father_less_.

Rich heard his stepmother's voice echoing about the hallways. She was talking very loudly -and rudely- to the person on the other line. Rich had trained himself to just ignore her and her evil, bitter personality. But nobody could completely ignore a woman like his soon to be stepmother.

She was a beautiful woman in her early thirties with blue eyes and lengthy curly brown hair. But, in reality, no one really saw her beauty behind that arrogant, conceited, and sour personality she has. Nothing like Rich's real mother. Everyday he wondered why on earth would his father leave his mother for Lori. His mother was beautiful woman, with features just the same as him, and a wonderful personality. She was an amazing woman and now, ever since the divorce, Rich hardly ever gets to see her.

Lori's voice began to get louder and louder as she approached the dining room in which Rich was eating his breakfast. He prepared himself for the earful of nothing important that he was about to receive from her. She always yells at him for no apparent reason at all, and grounds him on a regular basis. It get's old actually- she yells, he yells, he's grounded, and she's satisfied.

"Hey, kid," Lori said, coming nearer to the table when she entered the room. Her signature evil grimace plastered on her face, her bluetooth in her ear, a cup of coffee in her left hand, and the Gotham City Times rolled up and securely tucked between her right arm and slender waist. She was dressed in business casual attire -a high waisted, plain black skirt, that feel just above her knees, a soft pink, silk, long sleeve, collared shirt that was tucked into her skirt, and black Chanel heels.

"My name," he rolled his eyes, "Is Rich." It didn't surprise him -in the least bit- that she called him "kid". It was typical of her to address him out of his name -seeing as she didn't consider him important enough to have a name.

"Whatever," she sat herself, and her coffee, down on the table about a foot away from him and his breakfast. "Listen kid, your brother Riley is coming home for a while."

_Of course, _Rich thought, _I knew __her_ _coming to talk to me __had_ _to have something to do with __him__._

"Why is _he_ coming home?" Rich asked, complaining on the sly. He had a great disliking for his brother. His brother was better than him at everything, apart from sports. He always got straight A's, he was president of every academic related club, he was a section leader in both band and choir, and -in the teachers' eyes- he was pretty much a leader of the school. But Rich had always been more popular than him, seeing as Riley is a nerdy wimp. Which is part of the reason why he and Rich don't get along or associate outside of their home, even when they were at the same school. The only thing that is alike about the Grayson twins, is the way they look. But Rich has a toned and lean body, and Riley is a string bean. And -even though they look alike- everyone had to admit that Rich was the better looking one.

Lori snatched the newspaper from under her arm and unfolded the front page. She waved it right in front of Rich's face -nearly hitting him.

There, plastered on the front page of that day's newspaper, was a picture of Rich acting out in his English class, and a headline reading, "Wayne-Grayson Twins Revealed to be Rebellious Hoodlums".

Lori lowered the newspaper to reveal her scowling fair face, "Because of _you _and your crap," she hissed through clenched teeth, "Riley is being hounded by the paparazzi."

"Tell him to suck it up," Rich rolled his eyes yet again. He was very aware of how dramatic his pansy of brother could be. Every little thing to Riley is like the "sky is falling, the sky is falling!".

Lori rolled the newspaper back up and smacked him on the head with it, "No, I'm going to tell you to straighten up your act, _before_ I do it for you."

Rich glared at her, wanting to grab her by the neck and smack her around -but that would be considered unethical. And Lori glared back at her soon to be stepson as she tucked the newspaper underneath her arm -but there were so many other places that she wanted to put that newspaper.

"Listen, _Lori_," Rich grimaced, his teeth clenched and his tone stern, "_You_ are not _my _mother. And no matter what _you_ do, _I_ will never do what _you_ say. _Got it_?"

"I've got one word for you mister," Lori smirked, "Grounded."

"And I've got a few for the paparazzi," Rich returned with his smirk that not even Lori's could top, "Oh paparazzi, guess how the future Lori Wayne, that is, ahem, future Lori Wayne, reacted when she saw your headlines."

Lori leaned her face closer to his, squinted her eyes, and her smirk faded into a grimace, "You wouldn't."

Rich leaned closer to her, their noses almost touching, and smirked even wider, "Try me."

* * *

After pounding the snot out of Vic and Gar with volleyballs, the Roths and their friends spent that morning entertaining themselves with getting to know Kori better until she had to leave.

"Raven," Eagle said, monotonously, to her while grabbing his keys, "Can I talk to you for minute?"

"Sure," Raven sat her book down on the arm of the recliner, and followed him upstairs to his room -where she seldom went.

His room was the same as the last time she'd been in there. His computer was on his oak desk, the beige curtains were the same, his king sized bed with beige bedding was the same, and -of course- their family portrait was hanging on the wall.

"Listen," he began, "I'm...I'm sorry for what I said."

"Apology accepted, bro," Raven embraced her brother in a heart-filled hug. She knew that apologizing was probably the hardest thing that Eagle ever has to do. He has too much pride for things like that. But Raven knew that he was able to swallow his pride for her -or any of their siblings- any day.

"You know I didn't mean what I said, right?" Eagle asked, squeezing Raven tighter in his protective arms.

"I know," Raven clarified, and they pulled apart after Eagle placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. And Eagle, still with the same amount of pride he had before, left for work after asking Raven to tell Phoenix to stay out of his dreams.

* * *

Rich had been forced to pick Riley up from the airport since both his dad and Lori were at work. And Riley was too afraid to ride back in a limo alone. So, against his will, Rich drove to the Gotham City airport to get Riley. And, forgetting the fact that his eye was still very bruised, Rich left the mansion without anything covering his bruised and slightly swollen eye.

Rich scanned through the crowd of people who had just arrived back in Gotham from the flight that Riley was on. It did not take him long to see the almost mirror image of himself standing in the middle of the crowd -looking helpless and scared- and wearing his hideous school uniform -khaki pleated pants, blue blazer, white collared undershirt, and a gold and red diagonally striped tie.

Rich rolled his eyes and made his way over to his...brother.

"Come on Riley," Rich grabbed the suitcases from his brother's side, "Let's get the hell out of here." The last thing Rich wanted was for Riley to feel welcome at home. His main goal was to get Riley back to that school ASAP.

"So that's all I get?" Riley protested, "Not even a hey Riley, or a how you doing Riley, or I sure missed you Riley."

Rich turned and faced Riley, "If you do not come on, I swear I will turn around and leave you here."

Riley didn't have to receive that threat twice, and he followed Rich out of the airport and to his fancy car.

"I can't believe Dad actually bought this hideous death trap for you," Riley commented while Rich was putting his suitcases in the car.

"Just because," Rich slammed the trunk, "I actually have taste in cars and didn't ask for a plain old white truck like you, doesn't mean you have the right to bash my car." Rich was already ready to throw Riley off a building. Riley was just as annoying as he was a few weeks ago when Rich last saw him.

"That's it, no threat?" Riley tempted Rich.

"Talk about the car again, and you'll be tasting the rubber on its tires," Rich open the driver's side door, "Happy?"

"Just about," Riley climbed into the car on the passenger's side. Riley's favorite thing to do was push Rich's buttons as much as possible. And with living with Rich all his life, he knew exactly which buttons to push. But Rich also knew how to get underneath Riley's skin, and quite frankly, he was much better at it than his little brother.

"So what's the _real_ reason you want to come home, princess?" Rich inquired, driving off the parking lot.

"Why do _you_ have a bruised eye?" Riley had cleverly avoided this question until he needed it. _How does he know?...Twin telepathy, _Riley thought.

"Soccer accident," Rich lied without a tail, "Now spill, why do you want to come home?"

"Paparazzi, because of you," Riley replied.

"First of all," Rich pointed out, "It was your fault that I got kicked out because _you _snitched on me for throwing that party in the teachers lounge, and putting laxatives in the cafeteria food. So it's your fault that the paparazzi are all over you."

"Details, details," Riley brushed that off.

"Stop avoiding my question," Rich ordered, pulling his palatial vehicle over to the lane that would be entering the tallest and largest ramp at the overpass.

"What are you doing Rich?" Riley began to tighten his seat belt, "Why are you in this lane?"

"Answer my question," Rich said nonchalantly, his car nearing the overpass quickly, "You're running out of time."

"Rich! You know I'm scared of heights!" Riley exclaimed, shrinking down in his seat as the overpass came closer...and closer.

"Tick-tock, tick-tock," Rich teased his brother, sporting a surreptitious smirk, "Better hurry."

"Alright, alright," Riley winced and closed his eyes, fearing what might happen next, "I wanted to come home because Halloween is coming up, and some guys said that they were going to pull horrible pranks on me. And another guy kicked my butt! And Beatrice Schnickhorn won't go to the Halloween dance with me!" he spat out, and opened his eyes, only to see that Rich had switched back to the previous lane.

"The president of the science club gets declined, threatened, and his ass kicked," Rich inwardly laughed, "Imagine that."

"Shut up Rich," Riley pouted, "You make it seem like being a big tough guy who gets girls is easy."

"It is easy," Rich disagreed. He has never had issues with being a strong guy and a lady's man.

"Not if you're not...intimidating, like me, I'm just a string bean," Riley explained, feeling bad about himself. Even though Riley was a lot smarter than Rich, and his parents were more proud of him than they were of his older brother, Riley had always been jealous of Rich.

"I completely agree," Rich smiled sarcastically and looked over at his brother, only to receive a very unenthusiastic look.

"Come on Riley, you're a...stud," Rich encouraged him, putting his eyes back on the road, holding in his laughter.

"No I'm not," Riley disagreed, "You're only saying that to make me feel better."

"Well maybe if you believed it, you would feel better," Rich pointed out, innocently.

"Do you have any other side other than sarcasm?" Riley returned Rich's sarcasm.

"Actually no," Rich replied, chuckling, "And if you wouldn't be so negative..."

"That's the point," Riley interrupted him, "I don't want to be negative anymore."

"So, you want to like, change?" Rich inquired.

"Will you help me?" Riley answered.

"No," Rich denied, "Don't ever try to change yourself. If people don't like you for you, then fuck them. You are you. And nobody can change that."

"Thanks Rich, that means a lot," Riley showed his gratitude, "But, can you at least teach me how to fight?"

All in one motion, Rich swiftly swung his right fist and struck Riley's jaw, and then returned his hand back onto the steering wheel.

"What was that for?" Riley questioned, holding his bruised cheek.

"Lesson number one," Rich replied, "Always be on your guard, and _never_ snitch on your older brother.

* * *

End chapter

So, how was it? Not much happened in this chapter. It was basically just establishing some personalities, friendships, and home life. But, I promise for some major events and character introductions in the next chapter.

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- GothicPrincess

_Those who are faithful know only the trivial side of love; it is the faithless who know love's tragedies. _

_~Oscar Wilde_


	4. The Companionship

Hope you liked the last chapter, because here I am with the next one.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans.

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_Let your love be like the misty rains, coming softly, but flooding the river._

_~ Malagasy Proverb_

_Chapter four: **The Companionship**_

* * *

Normal POV

Raven had managed to avoid Rich for the time she had already been at school. He kept his distance from her in the hallways when they passed by each other. Raven was pleased and wished for it to continue to be this way, but Rich was not happy with their constant encounters without association. So, he devised a plan to where Raven would have to talk to him.

He was aware of the project that their chemistry teacher was planning to give them, and he was aware that they would be assigned partners. So, he typed up his own list of partners, changing Raven to being his partner, and planned on switching the lists during their chemistry class on Wednesday. He was positive that his plan would work; considering that he most likely wouldn't be caught because of his lightning quick skills.

Raven knew she was in for it in her next class, chemistry, which she now shared with Rich. Ever since Rich moved here, she dreaded going to it. It used to be a class that she shared with both Vic and Gar and also Tara. But now, it is the point in the day where everything goes down hill.

Raven reluctantly sauntered into her class, took her seat next to Tara at the lab table for two, and sat her backpack down next to her stool.

Tara smiled and greeted Raven warmly like she always did. Raven greeted her back, but a lot less enthusiastic.

Vic and Gar took their seats in at the lab table for two that was to the right of Raven's and Tara's lab table and they greeted her for the second time that day.

Raven looked around and saw Rich -still with his almost worse bruised eye- standing at the back of the room in front of Mrs. Hemingway's bulletin board. And for a second, a split second, she thought she saw Rich switch the paper that was posted there with another one. Raven concluded that her eyes were just playing tricks on her, nothing more. So she turned her head back to the front of the classroom and blinked her eyes a couple of times as the bell sounded.

"Alright everyone," Mrs. Hemingway entered the room, "The bell has rang, please take your seats."

With the sound of shuffling feet and bags being shifted, everyone took a seat.

"So today," Mrs. Hemingway continued, "We will be starting a major project that will be counting for forty-five percent of your grade, and we will be working on it for the next three weeks."

Gar groaned loudly and obnoxiously, as he was expected to.

"You will be assigned a partner," Mrs. Hemingway continued, ignoring Gar's unnecessary outburst, "And both of you will contribute to creating a science project of your choice. Chose the gist of your project, and confirm it with me. The partners' list is posted on the bulletin board, get started."

With the sound of feet shuffling, groans, and a few swear words, the class began getting with their partners and starting their projects.

Raven reluctantly sauntered over to the bulletin board to see who would be her partner.

_As long as, _Raven thought, scanning through the list to find her name, _I'm not with...damn._

Raven discovered that her partner was none other than, Richard Grayson. The number one person she did not want to be with. What did she do to deserve this cruel punishment?

Raven winced and turned on her heels to see Rich, sitting were Tara previously was, and waving innocently to her.

_We're going to fight fire with fire Grayson, _Raven thought, sending him death glares as she took her seat next to her mortal enemy and his bruised eye. She was more than satisfied with the damage she did to him. It gave him a taste of the hate she had towards him.

"Hey Raven," he greeted her smugly, "What a coincidence, you know, _me _and _you_, project partners."

"And that's all we are, Grayson, so let's just get this over with before I give you _another_ black eye," Raven commented bluntly.

"Whatever you say, boss," Rich replied. From this point on, Rich didn't want to argue and fuss with Raven. He knew she didn't like him as a friend -or at all, for that matter. But he still didn't want them to be enemies. Anything but enemies.

Surprised by Rich's response, Raven focused all of her attention back onto their project.

* * *

"Raven-"

"No, Grayson, I don't want to hear it," Raven denied and continued walking down the hallway away from him. She knew he was bound to come after her eventually, but she didn't know that they would be the only two in the hallway when it did. Raven had been excused from her class to go to the restroom, while Richard had been trying out for soccer during that period, and had finished early so he was going to leave for the day -which explained why he was carrying his things.

"Please, I'm begging you, just listen," he pleaded, running after her. Never had Richard Grayson found himself in this kind of situation before. He'd never wanted a girl so bad that he would actually beg for her to talk to him. But he'd also never known a person as beautiful as Raven, or someone who actually saw him as Richard Grayson, and not his money. Then again, he's never known a person that hated him _because _of his money.

Raven stopped sharply and turned and faced the teen who was but a foot from her, "What?" she hissed, glaring daggers.

"Why won't you just talk to me?" he inquired, his sparkling blue eyes glazed over with hurt, one of which had a dark red mark underneath it from the incident a few days prior.

"_I...do...not...like...you_," Raven drawled, a vein pulsating in her forehead, "And I never will. You are the biggest douche bag I've ever met in my life, and I wouldn't care if you dropped off the face of this planet. You lowlife jerk, get out of my face and stay out of my life!" She grabbed all the papers, folders, and books that he was holding in his hands, and threw them on the floor by is feet. She turned, rolling her eyes, and stormed off.

But then, she began to think about that look he had in his eyes a few moments prior, and the big bruise underneath the right one that she had caused, and her footsteps gradually began to get lighter.

She couldn't help but feel bad for the guy; he obviously just wanted a chance to be friends with her, and she had continually denied him rudely. Her footsteps began to get slower as she felt bad about her actions towards him.

And that look that he'd just given her, that look, it just made her soul feel regretful because she obviously caused it. And that look, that very look, is what made Raven's footsteps stop altogether. Maybe she could take a chance at a new friendship?

_Damn you Phoenix _Raven mentally cursed her brother as she approached the boy on his knees, retrieving his things that she had thrown. Rich didn't look up at her as she neared closer to him; he was expecting for her to punch him in the eye again, not to do what she did. Raven got down on her knees in front of him, and began to help him pick up his things.

Rich gazed at her in disbelief. This girl, the one that despised Richard so, was she actually being nice to him? Or was it an act? Rich wasn't very sure at the moment; he was still in shock and wasn't able to think straight. But, he knew his eyes weren't deceiving him; this was really happening.

"Sorry," Raven apologized, still not looking up at him, not ready to give up her pride just yet.

Rich snapped out of his daze, not at the sound of her voice, but the word she spoke. Not only was Raven being nice, but she was apologizing. Okay, he was finding _this_ a little hard to believe.

Raven picked up one of his things that wasn't completely strewn out all over the floor, "I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine," Rich interrupted her, afraid that he would loose his sanity if she continued, "You're not the first per...well, yeah you are the first person. But it's cool, no need to apologize."

Raven looked up at him, mentally thanking him for letting her savor her pride while she still had it, and her stomach jumped when she noticed how dark the red mark was underneath his eye. She hit him a lot harder than she thought she did, and a lot harder than she intended to. "Your eye."

"No, it makes me look tough cause I tell everyone it was a soccer accident." Rich only told that to Riley, but he was hoping to stifle a laugh from her. But he only received a slight curve of her lip, which was disappointing.

Raven broke the eye contact that she had with Richard, and looked down at what she was picking up. She laid eyes on an amazing flawless sketch of a woman with flowing loose curls cascading like a waterfall down her back. She had almond shaped eyes that gleamed with happiness and shine, and perfectly arched eyebrows. The woman was clad in a dress that was snug on her curvaceous body and bore diamonds around neckline. She was beautiful, and the sketch was the most wonderful one Raven had ever seen.

Rich stared at Raven, noticing every one of her naturally flawless features. Raven was truly beautiful. She was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, and her body had just enough curves in all the right places, and something about her aroused him. Something about Raven lured him in. Something about her made him want to delve deeper into her, and get to know her. Something, that he just couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Did you draw this?" Raven inquired, her voice brought Rich out of his daze and he stopped admiring her beauty for the time being.

Rich looked down at the drawing in her hand, "Yea."

"Who is this lady?" Raven asked, admiring the sketch once more. She had no idea that Rich had this kind of talent. Why didn't he mention this the first day they met? Then they might have been friends from the start.

"That's my mother," Rich replied, also admiring the sketch, "Beautiful isn't she?"

"She's gorgeous," Raven agreed, uncomfortable that Rich was getting closer to her. She shifted her eyes from the drawing of Richard's mother, to a lot more drawings that were within the pile of papers.

She flipped through them. She saw sketches of many more gorgeous woman, of cars, of graffiti, of roses and skulls, and all sorts of things. "You're really good," Raven complimented, "...Although, you probably don't need me telling you that. Your dad probably bought you a museum to put all your drawings in." Raven tucked her hair behind her ear as she continued examining the sketches.

"No," Rich informed her, smiling, "He and his fiancee don't really pay that much attention to them. They're too busy being proud of my twin brother, Riley. But it's no big deal."

Raven looked up at him to see that he had situated himself beside her instead of in front of her like before. She slowly nodded at the information he'd just given her as she secretly eased herself away from him, only a small inch or two.

Raven went back to flipping through the drawings, and she came across one of a young woman, around her age. She was standing alone in a meadow, only accompanied by a dove that rested on her extended slender wrist. Her arm that held the bird was slightly bent and was holding the hand with the bird beside her heart shaped face. The girl had a widows peak, with short tresses of shaded black hair, and she was a little short for her age. She was clad in a long sleeve shirt, a vest, and shorts. But Raven realized who the girl was when she laid eyes on a pair of combat boots that she knew all too well.

"Is...is this me?" Raven inquired, and she noticed Rich jump a little when she spoke.

He looked in her hands at the sketch she held, "Uh...yea, it is you." Rich was afraid of how Raven would react if he told her that he actually sits around thinking about her and drawing pictures of her. But he was surprised when she didn't blow her top, instead, she just continued looking at the picture, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"No...I don't do her justice," Raven slightly shook her head no, "She's way too beautiful." Raven had never admitted to anybody that she was insecure about the way she looked. She hated her widows peak; it was so, noticeable, that it was almost unnatural looking. And her eyes were way too big, and her skin was way too pale. She hated how her body was way too exaggerated, and that she was way shorter than any other sixteen year old.

"No, the picture doesn't do you justice," Rich disagreed, "_You're _beautiful Raven. If you weren't, I wouldn't have had the muse to draw you."

Raven was uncomfortable when she felt his intense gaze on her. She hated being stared at. It just made her feel even more insecure.

"Well, I have to get back to class," Raven quickly handed Rich his things before getting back up on her feet and walking off.

"Wait," Rich called after her, "So...are we friends?"

Raven turned and faced him, sporting a smirk, "Don't push your luck, Grayson."

* * *

"So, you're saying, that if I joined the baseball team, you'd go out with me?" Gar attempted to change Kori's words around to where it sounded as if she were agreeing to go out with him.

"No Gar," Kori giggled, "That's not what I meant when I said I liked baseball."

Vic and Tara began laughing at Gar's embarrassment, while Raven just rolled her eyes at his all of a sudden desperation.

"I'm going to miss you guys," Tara sighed.

"What do you mean, Tar?" Gar asked.

"I'm going on vacation to Spain for the next few weeks, and we won't be back until like Halloween," Tara explained.

"Trust me, Tara, you're going to be in the country with beautiful sights and attractive Spanish men, and we'll be here, listening to Gar's lame jokes and Vic's sports talk; you're not the one missing out," Raven explained without looking up.

Kori and Tara fell into fits of laughter while Vic and Gar pouted.

"Check that out," Vic pointed over to the cafeteria door. His friends wondered what was in his line of vision so they followed his finger and laid eyes on Rich, entering the cafeteria with Jinx, and they were _laughing_...

_Gross _Raven thought, _I could have gone my whole life without having to see that. _She'd never really gotten along that pale, bright pink haired teen. The moment that Raven laid eyes on Jinx, she had an instant hate for her. Something about Jinx set Raven off. Was it they way that she walked; stealthily, like a black panther. Was it the way she always wore some form of a black jumpsuit everyday? Was it the way that she always had to leave so suddenly? There was just something about Jinx, and Raven couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Well, she's not my type, but whatever floats his boat," Gar commented, going back to his lunch. Gar hadn't really he had a feeling that Jinx was too weird for even him to be friends with. She always ran off at the most random moments, with no real excuse. And, quite frankly, he didn't need another strange friend.

"She's nobody's type," Tara added, "Nobody even get's along with her."

"Whatever, here they come," Raven informed them quietly, not even looking up from her lunch tray. They all copied her notions, and looked down at their food, stopping all conversation.

"Hey guys," Rich greeted them when he and Jinx reached the table that Raven and her friends were at. They stood behind the side of the rectangular lunch table where Vic, Gar, and Kori sat.

"Sup bro," Gar turned and he and Rich did their handshake that they thought was cool. And only those two knew how to do it; it was so long and complicated that nobody even took the time to attempt it.

"Dude," Vic greeted him with a knuckle touch, typical.

"Hey Raven," Rich greeted her. Raven looked up from her lunch, and his stormy blue gaze was upon her. She gave him a nod of the head to acknowledge his presence before going back to her lunch. Which was enough to make his stomach jump; Raven didn't actually _say _anything to acknowledge him, but a nod meant that she was actually paying attention to him -and not because she was running away from him or insulting him. Which was a major step from the day they first meet.

Kori nudged Gar in the ribs, making him aware of the fact that she wasn't acquainted with Richard.

"Oh yea," Gar put his arm around Kori's shoulder, ignoring the shooting pain in his stomach, "This beautiful senior is my girlfriend, Kori." Gar lifted his eyebrows up and down in a perverted way at Kori, receiving a kick in the shin from an unknown person underneath the table. Was that a vein pulsating in Tara's forehead that Gar saw?

"Not," Kori picked up his arm and unwrapped it from around her, "Your girlfriend."

Gar sighed, rubbing his throbbing shin, and humiliated as he received smirks from everyone.

"I'm Kori," she turned and shook Rich's outstretched hand, "Kori Anders. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Richard Grayson," he introduced himself, letting his hand fall, "But you can call me Rich. And it's nice to meet you too. And guys this is Jinx, my friend."

There was a series of mumbled "hey's" and "hi's" from everybody, but Raven, who suddenly found a button on her shirt very interesting. Rich and Jinx joined them at the table; Jinx beside Kori, and two seats diagonal from Raven, and Rich next to Vic, diagonal from Tara.

Rich looked Tara's way and she smiled at him, "Tara," she introduced herself.

"Rich," he replied.

Raven's friends began to converse immediately, with everyone joining in in some way, while she just observed the pink haired girl. Jinx sat there, sitting straight up, her eyes darting back and forth to whoever was talking, and Raven subtlety watched her every move, unnoticed by the others.

The words that were spoken around Raven became muffled noises that echoed throughout her ears and mind as she observed every feature of the mysterious teen. Her bright, bright, unnatural looking blue eyes, that odd light pink hair color, those eccentric pigtails, that deathly pale skin, and yet, rosy pink cheeks. Jinx truly had a peculiar look to her; and every detail she had set Raven off.

Jinx began to seem uncomfortable, and Raven knew that Jinx was aware that she was watching her, so she looked back at her lunch tray. But, out of the corner of her eye, Raven noticed Jinx slightly wincing as if she was in pain.

"I have to go," Jinx said, and everyone, minus Raven, watched her as she stood to leave.

"Chick's loony," Gar muttered as everybody went back to what they were doing before.

Raven looked up and spared Jinx one last look before she left the cafeteria all together. And for a second, a split second, Raven saw Jinx's eyes flash a bright pink color. And this time, Raven didn't doubt what she had seen; this time, she was sure it really happened. She didn't know what she saw, but she knew she saw it.

"Yep," Raven said under her breath, "There's definitely something about Jinx..."

* * *

End Chapter

So how was it? Okay, so two major events happened in this chapter: Raven gives Rich a chance, and Jinx is introduced. So, the next chapter, and another major event happens and I can't wait to write it.

So, my OCs weren't really mentioned in this chapter, but no worries, they'll have a big huge part in the next chapter. So please don't kill about that. And I know this chapter was really short, so don't kill me about that either.

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3. Write the things I could improve on or you thought I did good.  
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5. Write your thoughts about Jinx so far, and how she was introduced.  
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-GothicPrincess

_Love is like dew that falls on both nettles and lilies._

_~Swedish Proverb_


	5. The Earthquake

Okay, so I really hope you guys liked the last chapter, because here I am with the next one. And thank you for all the reviews, I really, really appreciate them. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength,  
While loving someone deeply gives you courage. _

**_~Lao Tzu_**

_Chapter five: **The Earthquake**_

* * *

Normal POV

Raven awoke with a start the next morning. For some reason, she felt as if she was inside a giant exercise ball that was tumbling down thousands of flights of stairs. Raven sat up in her bed, feeling as if she were going to throw up, and shook her head and rubbed her eyes. But, for a reason unknown, she still felt sickeningly dizzy.

She jumped out of her bed and onto to her feet, only to have herself fall flat on her back on the hard floor, which puzzled her even more. She knew she wasn't graceful, by any means, but she wasn't so clumsy that she'd fall as soon as her feet hit the floor; that just wasn't her.

_Ouch_ Raven mentally groaned, massaging her temples as she sat up from her fall, _Wha...?_

She attempted to stand once more, this time slower. But each time she made progress, Raven would just lose her balance and her footing, and fall again. For some reason, she just couldn't get back onto her feet. Either her feet weren't cooperating, or it was the fact that nothing seemed stable to her at the moment.

Raven stopped her attempts to get back up -which were in vain anyways- and rubbed the sleep from her sleepy eyes. Her blurry vision focused just enough for her to see that things were falling off of her shelves. And that her room was...spinning? Falling?

_What's going on?_ she shook her head once more, really trying to wake herself up from this...nightmare. But something felt so real about it. And she could have sworn that she had woken up just a few minutes ago. Didn't she? Or was it just part of her nightmare? Right now, nothing was clear to her, not even her hearing.

Raven massaged her temples, trying a different approach to get all of her senses on board. And her hearing began to work properly, or just enough so that she was able to detect a loud rumbling noise. What was going on? She figured she had to be dreaming. Raven had never been in anything like this before, so, therefore, it couldn't be real. It just couldn't.

Her door burst open, and she was immensely relieved when she saw Phoenix rushing into her room. Had he heard her fall? Or did he notice the rumbling noises too? But what frightened Raven, was that her brother's normally always happy jade green eyes were glazed over with a cloud of angst and urgency. This was unreal. Never, ever, ever, had Phoenix had this look plastered on his face before. Not just his eyes, but all of his smooth, flawless features were upturned and twisted with worry.

"Raven!" Phoenix yelled over the loud rumbling noise.

Raven saw him searching over her room for her. It was dark, and Raven's black pajamas didn't help her stand out. She tried to call his name, but nothing came out but air. Her throat was parched, it was a lot earlier than she was used to getting up. So, instead, Raven lifted her hand into the air, reaching for him, making him aware of her location on the floor, and that she was unable to get up.

"Come on!" Phoenix grabbed her hand and somehow pulled her onto his back and they sprinted out of her room.

Raven wanted to ask him what was his hurry. Why were they running? Where were they going? So many questions sat on the tip of her tongue, and yet, none of them would leave her mouth. No sound would come out, and this aggravated her. But then, Raven became aware that it wasn't the fact that her throat was dry that she was unable to talk, but it was fear that imprisoned her voice. Yes, her throat was dry, but that didn't prevent her from speaking. And the fact that she had no idea what was going on and so many questions didn't help any.

Raven wasn't able to think straight; her head was spinning, her heart was racing, and her vision was blurry. Her usually keen senses just weren't cooperating and behaving correctly. All she knew was that she was...bouncing? But, she figured it was just the fact that Phoenix was running and she was on his back, so, therefore, she was bouncing with him. But then, Raven realized that Phoenix wasn't bouncing as he carried her, but the house was violently shaking...

_Earthquake _the words echoed through Raven's mind, and she began to panic. What was going to happen? Where Eagle and Phoebe okay? How long has this been going on? Those questions and many more penetrated her mind as she and Phoenix rushed through their house.

She'd never been in an earthquake before, and she was, no matter how much she didn't want to admit it, scared. The last one that occurred in Gotham City, happened a year before she was born. But, Phoenix and Eagle had been in one. So, she hoped, that they knew what to do.

Over the years, Raven had not even thought about what to do during an earthquake. Neither her nor her siblings, so she assumed that they had no plan. But that scared her even more. And she wasn't going to think about that right now.

Raven saw that pictures had fallen from the walls as they ran through the hallway, and she saw that the stairs still looked safe as Phoenix rushed her down them. But, when they reached the middle of the staircase, a more violent shake of the earth caused Phoenix to lose his footing, and he and Raven toppled down them.

Raven knew that she would be left with many bruises when she landed at the bottom of the staircase, with Phoenix landing on top of her. But, instead of letting up off of Raven, Phoenix huddled himself over her and shielded her body from anything that might be hurdled towards them.

For a moment, the Earth and the house stood still, and it was long enough for Phoenix to move from on top of Raven, and helped her up from the floor.

"You okay?" Phoenix asked Raven, holding her shoulders to help her keep her balance, and looking deep into her eyes.

For the first time, Raven saw passed the magnificent color in his eyes, and she saw the depth in them. And for a moment, she stopped worrying about the earthquake, and she just observed his eyes. There was so much in the depths of them that Raven thought she was looking right into his soul. They held hurt, betrayal, torment, sadness and yet, so much secrecy within them.

"Raven," he repeated, looking back and forth to each of her eyes.

Then, all the things Raven saw in his eyes...disappeared. And it was replaced with so much fear that Raven wanted to tell him that he was scaring her. But, again, no sound would escape her mouth. So, instead, she nodded.

Phoenix noticed how his sister looked so scared, and he hid his fear as well as he could. Trying to reassure her that he would be brave for her.

Raven saw that the fear in his eyes went away, he looked...determined to do something. Raven couldn't explain how much better she felt when his fear went away. It was like she knew that he was able to take care of her.

Phoenix smiled at her, and tucked her hair behind her ear, revealing a small cut on the side of her face that had been hidden behind her hair.

He would have treated it immediately if the earth hadn't started back shaking. And this time, it was even worse.

Phoenix sprung into action and grabbed Raven's hand, but stopped when he saw Eagle racing down the stairs.

"Phoenix!" Eagle shouted as he hurried down the stairs, "Where's Phoebe!"

Raven was barely able to detect the fright in Eagle's voice. And her vision, which was fully intact now, was able to take in the scared look on his face. Which frightened her. Something had to be completely horrifying for it to scare Eagle.

"I thought she was with you!" Phoenix yelled back and the Earth shook _harder. _Over the loud rumbling noise, the three were able to hear a shrill scream. A scream of Phoebe's...

All of their heads turned to the source of the sound, and Eagle turned swiftly to go up the stairs, but Raven stopped him.

"Wait! Something is burning!" she exclaimed. Finally, she was able to speak. And her senses were able to detect the smell of burning wood inside the house, and she knew they weren't deceiving her. So, she escaped from Phoenix's grasp, and stumbled over to the kitchen and grabbed the fire extinguisher from underneath the sink, and tossed it over to Eagle, who was ready to catch it.

"Phoenix, get Raven and go underneath the table and stay there! I'm going to find Phoebe!" Eagle turned and rushed up the shaking staircase. Phoenix grabbed Raven's arm and pulled her underneath the table, where he wrapped her in his protective arms, and she hid her face in his chest.

Eagle saw the smoke pouring from underneath Phoebe's door as he rounded the corner of the hallway. His heart skipped a beat, and he hoped for the best with _all_ his might.

Eagle burst through his little sister's door, and he saw that the tree from their backyard had fallen into her room. And a powerline from outside had been broken, and from it's position tangled in the tree, the sparks and fire shooting from it, were landing on Phoebe's bed. And her bed was ablaze...

"Phoebe!" Eagle shouted, tears rimming his eyes as he inwardly prayed that his sister wasn't still asleep in her bed. He refused to let himself believe what his mind was telling him. Phoebe was fine, she had to be. She just _had_ to be.

Eagle quickly activated the fire extinguisher, and smothered the fire on her bed in the freezing air. "Phoebe!" he shouted her name again, praying for reply.

He ripped what was left of the ash covered, smoking, and scalding hot blankets off of her bed. Ignoring the burning pain of his hand, Eagle eagerly searched over her bed. Immensely relieved when she wasn't there, he wondered where she could have been.

"Phoebe!" he yelled her name again, maneuvering himself around the tree, lifting the branches and shuffling through the leaves, searching for her. Wishing with all his heart that she was somewhere in them, and that she was okay.

"Eagle," he heard Phoebe whimper his name.

He turned sharply, and saw his sister huddled up in the corner behind the door, her doll in her lap, her face smeared with ash and stained in tears, and she was truly terrified.

Eagle ran to her, gathering her up in his arms, and thanking the high heavens that she was okay. He picked her up bridal style and Phoebe hugged her doll and laid her head on his chest as he rushed her downstairs, where they joined Phoenix and Raven underneath the table. Eagle and Phoenix wrapped their sisters in their embrace, where Raven and Phoebe felt safe.

* * *

Eagle and his siblings emerged from underneath the table a few minutes later. The biggest part of the earthquake was over, and now, only aftershocks were expected.

Eagle, who was carrying Phoebe, Raven and Phoenix made their way outside and out of reach from the house, joining a lot of their neighbors in the street, but keeping to themselves.

The sun was just rising, and as it did, they saw that their neighborhood wasn't completely destroyed. A few fallen trees, collapsed fireplaces, and scattered debris here and there, but nothing major.

Raven, Phoenix, Phoebe, and Eagle situated themselves in the grass, where Phoenix took a look at Raven's cut, and Eagle rocked Phoebe back and forth in his arms.

A little while later, a man, wearing an inspector badge, approached them from a black Cadillac Escalade.

"Are you the Roth family?" he inquired, his glasses pushed to the tip of his nose, and his adamsapple plunging up and down as he spoke.

"Yes, sir," Phoenix replied standing up from the grass, seeing as Eagle was busy pacifying a whimpering Phoebe.

"And is 1326 Willow's Creek Road your address?" he asked, double checking his clipboard.

"Yes sir that is correct," Phoenix answered.

"I'm going to inspect your house to make sure it's safe to go back into," he started towards their home.

"But we didn't call an inspector...yet," Raven stopped him.

"Oh right, I was sent here by a...a Richard Grayson," the inspector informed her, and Phoenix gave him the approval to inspect the house.

Raven's stomach jumped when she heard this. How did he even know where she lived? And Raven's question was answered when Gar and Vic approached her and her family.

"Is everybody alright?" Gar asked, eyeing Eagle -the man whom he'd acknowledged as his worst nightmare- holding a little girl and actually looking as if he were going to cry.

"We're fine," Raven replied, standing up from the grass, "Phoebe just needs to be looked over by a doctor. I think she might be in shock. But, you guys want to tell me how Grayson got my address?"

"Well, what happened was..." Vic hesitated, "Tell her Gar."

"We...uh, well, he called and asked if we were okay, then he offered to send the best inspectors in Gotham to our houses, so we told him our addresses, and yours too," Gar rushed through that answer and he and Vic prepared themselves for Raven's explosion.

"Thanks," Raven surprised them with her reply. _She _didn't even know she would react that way; but something told her it was a good thing.

"Uh...you're welcome?" Gar was unsure of how to respond, but he was happy when Raven changed the subject.

She turned to her brothers, "What are we going to do about Phoebe? She can't stay in her room until after the wall and is fixed and her things are replaced."

"Well, Eagle and I can repair her room," Phoenix offered, "And she can sleep in the living room until it's fixed." Phoenix reached over and ran his hand through her long hair.

"How does that sound, Phoebe?" Eagle asked her. He was still pretty shocked from what happened, and how close he came to loosing his sister. But his normal manly stoic self was coming back already.

Phoebe lifted her head and nodded it slowly before letting it fall back into the crook of Eagle's neck.

"Everything will be alright, Feebster, as long as you don't open the coat closet," Gar laughed as he nudged Vic's elbow. Vic knew what was coming, so he didn't respond to Gar's joke.

Phoebe lifted her head again and faced them all, "What's in the coat closet?" she asked in her innocent voice.

"Nothing, nothing," Vic motioned for Gar to follow along so he could get himself out of the situation.

"Yea, nothing but all the monsters and ghouls that get chased from underneath your bed," Gar fell into fits of laughter.

"I'm not sleeping in there. No, no, no," Phoebe refused, tears welling up in her eyes.

Eagle glared at Gar, rising up from the grass, and handing Phoebe to Phoenix. "_Why, why, why, would you __say that_?" he spat at the teen, wanting to do things to him that weren't physically possible.

"Well, Phoebe can sleep in my room and _I_ can bunk on the couch," Phoenix calmed Eagle down, Phoebe snuggled up against his neck, saving his friend's life.

"Great idea Phoenix, you guys take care, bye," Gar fled from that area, taking Vic with him.

* * *

Later on that day, everything had calmed down. Phoebe was asleep on the couch, and her siblings were cleaning the house as she was.

Raven busied herself with cleaning the kitchen, Phoenix was tidying up the living room, while Eagle was rummaging around upstairs in Phoebe's room.

Raven's mind kept wandering back to what she saw during the earthquake in Phoenix's eyes as she was wiping down the kitchen counters, ridding them of the chips of plaster from the ceiling. She watched her brother as he maneuvered himself through the living room, careful not to make a sound and wake Phoebe, bending over and picking things up or dusting others off. And she longed to look deeply into his eyes once more, just so she could analyze what was hiding in them. Just to reassure herself that it wasn't her imagination.

"You mind not staring me down? It's kind of distracting," Phoenix whispered to Raven, smirking as he placed the pillows back on the couch. He could feel his sister's intense amethyst gaze on him. No matter how subtle Raven was trying to be, her deep violet orbs always alerted Phoenix and also others. They were too obvious and extraordinary to be secret.

Raven snapped out of her daze at the sound of his voice. Her eyes shot down at the counter as she wiped it quicker, trying to pretend as if she weren't just staring at him. "Yea, I was just um..." Raven knitted her eyebrows trying to find an excuse, and her hand slowed down. "Um...Phoenix, is...is there anything bothering you?" she asked, looking up at him as she did.

"Is there anything bothering _you_," Phoenix inquired, chuckling, "You seem like the one who's bothered." He glanced over to her before he lifted the recliner back into array the way it was before.

"Yeah...I'm...I'm fine, it's just, you seemed...troubled earlier. You were acting...out of sorts," Raven explained, stopping her hand all together.

"What do you mean?" he asked, sitting the side table upright next to the couch.

"I dunno, it's just, you're not you. I can tell," Raven explained further. She didn't know exactly how to explain her thoughts to him. And she most definitely didn't want to tell him that she saw something in his eyes, then he might think she was losing her sanity. So she just decided to beat around the bush and get him to spill and tell her what was on his mind.

"I'm fine," Phoenix insisted, smiling as he squatted down to pick up the broken glass from a shattered table lamp.

"You're lying," Raven shifted her weight to her right hip. She could tell that he was lying. Phoenix had a tell, one that only Raven and her siblings could detect. Every time Phoenix told a lie, he wouldn't smile with his entire face, just his mouth.

"I'm not lying," Phoenix denied, another fake smile played about his lips.

"Whatever, don't tell me. But I will find out, eventually," Raven waltzed from behind the counter, and gave him a look that proved his guiltiness, while he gave her a more innocent one as Eagle came weightlessly jogging down the stairs.

"Okay," he announced, stoically of course, "Phoebe's room will take about a couple hundred bucks to fix, and a few weeks. But nothing Phoenix and I can't do ourselves." Eagle made his way over to the table, which was only separated from the rest of the kitchen by the biggest counter and the back of the cabinets that were above it. "Guys, come look at what I found."

Raven and Phoenix joined their brother in the kitchen. Phoenix pulled Raven's chair out for her, and she sat down in it, facing Eagle with her legs crossed. While Phoenix sat on the right side of Eagle, opposite of Raven, with the chair turned around backwards, and his head resting on the support bar.

Eagle dug into his pocket and pulled out a photo.

"Wait, you went through Phoebe's things?" Raven asked, crossing her arms over her stomach.

"I'm the oldest, I go through everyone's things," Eagle replied, handing the photo to Phoenix.

"Not mine, I lock my door," Raven pointed out.

"And you really think that _I don't have_ the_ spare key _to_ your lock_?" Eagle proved himself, and had a more victorious look on his porcelain face. Raven let him enjoy his moment but planned on switching the lock on her door later.

Phoenix handed the picture to Raven and she observed it. The right edge of the picture was burnt. But not burnt enough to interfere with the main portion of the picture. The photo was a black and white, close up, portrait of her mother and father. They were sitting alone in a field of flowers. Raven's father held her mother in his arms, and she had her hand pressed against his face as he kissed her cheek. Her mother's head was thrown back, her eyes closed, and the most joyful smile played about her face. Her flowing jet black curls followed the wind behind her, and her pale skin brightened the photo.

"It's mom and dad," Raven looked up at her brothers, who were watching her. She always knew that Phoebe secretly missed her mother and father more than any of them did. And some nights, she swore she heard her weeping...

"I found it underneath Phoebe's pillow," Eagle explained, taking the photo from Raven's outstretched hand.

"You are such a snoop," Raven rolled her eyes, "That's invading her privacy." He was such a good little creeper that Raven never really noticed that he prowled in their things.

"She's eight," Eagle pointed out, "What privacy? Goodness Raven, quit being such a girl."

"I am a girl, and you're a jerk," Raven scoffed, dripping with sarcasm.

"I know, it says so on _every single_ page in your diary," Eagle told her, and began to recite the words from Raven's diary, "_God, Eagle is such an insensitive jerk. Eagle pisses me off, such a jerk_."

"At least now I don't have to say it behind your back," Raven rolled her eyes, "Jerk.-"

"Okay, guys," Phoenix interrupted Raven, who was about to say something else to Eagle. "We're all jerks. Now let's just move on." He wanted to end that conversation before it turned into an argument. And he knew that nothing good ever happened when his siblings lost their temper.

They nodded, and the chime of the doorbell caught their attention.

"I'll get it," Raven stood up from the table and made her way over to the door. She opened the oak door to see Kori standing there on the stoop, wearing only purple sweats, slippers, and black Dior eyeglasses.

"Hi Kori," Raven stepped aside so that Kori could come inside, "What are you doing here?"

"Hey Raven," Kori came inside and Raven closed the door behind them, "I um..."

"Hey Kor," Phoenix greeted her as she and Raven joined him and Eagle in the kitchen. Phoenix stood and pulled out the chairs for Kori and Raven and they both sat down, Raven with her legs crossed, and Kori with her feet tied and her hands laced together in her lap. While Eagle was standing at the head of the table, closing up the box, and Phoenix was still sitting backwards in his chair, with his head resting on the support bar.

"Hi Kori," Eagle greeted her monotonously, placing the box on the kitchen counter, and he tossed everyone an apple -minus Raven, he knew she wouldn't want one.

"Hey guys," Kori smiled friendly at them, tucking her hair behind her ear, and playing with apple in her hand.

"Since when do you wear glasses?" Eagle questioned.

"Oh...I didn't have time to put my contacts in," Kori adjusted the glasses on her face, "I bet I look like such a dork." She smiled as she made fun of herself.

"No you don't," Raven playfully nudged her, and Kori took a bite out of her apple, hiding her blush that crept onto her cheeks because everyone was staring at her.

"So how much damage did the earthquake give your neighborhood, Kor?" Phoenix inquired, taking a bite out of the apple that had been hurdled towards him.

"Well...a lot," Kori shrugged, and looked down at the silk hand that had been placed on her knee. A hand that belonged to her true friend Raven.

"Well, is everything okay," Raven asked, looking directly into her emerald eyes, behind her glasses.

Kori was sure that Raven would be worried about her, and the look in Raven's eyes sure proved her right. Raven was her very good and faithful friend, who would always care for her. "My house isn't," Kori explained, "It's going to take at least a month or two to fix."

"So, where are you going to stay?" Phoenix inquired, a little concerned.

"Well, my parents are going to stay with my sister in Jump City," Kori replied, "And I don't get along with my sister, so I have to go stay with my grandma in Kauai."

"So, you're leaving?" Raven clarified, "You can't leave, you're my friend."

"And I won't have to...if I can find a place to stay here in Gotham," Kori hinted. Raven made a slight movement towards her right, to where Eagle was in the kitchen, preparing dinner.

Kori stood and leaned over on the counter, supporting herself with her forearms folded and propped up on the counter, watching Eagle's back as he rummaged through the cabinets, "Hey Eagle."

He didn't turn around when he heard her voice, "Yea." Phoenix and Raven joined Kori, in the same position as her on the counter; Raven on her right and Phoenix on her left.

"Do you..." Kori hesitated but went on with a little encouraging nudge from Raven, "Think I could stay...here, just for a few weeks until my house is fixed? And my parents can pay you."

Eagle turned and faced his siblings and Kori, each of them watching intently for his reply. He leaned his back against the counters, folded his arms across his chest, and crossed his left foot over his right one -a pose that his siblings knew all to well, his "thinking pose".

After a few seconds of mulling over Kori's question, Eagle spoke again, "Where is she going to sleep? Phoenix is already on the couch."

"Why is Phoenix on the couch?" Kori asked, glancing over to the boy on her left, and then back to the more mysterious one in front of her.

"Because Phoebe's room caught on fire," Phoenix replied, "And she was going to stay on the couch, but then Gar freaked her out about the closet, and now, I'm going to bunk on the couch while she sleeps in my room."

"Well, Kori can stay in my room with me, I'm willing to share," Raven offered, and she watched as her oldest brother considered it.

Even though Eagle's face was completely emotionless, Raven and her other brother Phoenix, could tell that Eagle was having an internal argument with himself. And was probably mentally writing a pros and cons list, but, instead of trying to detect a sign of what his answer might be, -which was hopeless- they watched and waited intently for his reply.

After staring at the floor for a few minutes, Eagle's internal conflict ended, and he looked up and was met by a colorful audience of eyes. He made them wait for a couple of seconds before he replied, "Whatever," and went back to preparing dinner.

"Wait," Raven stopped Kori, and covered Kori's mouth with her hand, "Alright," Kori let out a very joyous muffled scream, and she jumped up and down.

Raven moved her hand and Kori embraced her, "Thank you Raven," she pulled back and was meet by a real genuine smile from Raven.

"You're welcome," Raven took her hand, "Let's go get you moved in."

* * *

Raven sat on her bed, while Kori was on the floor folding her clothes or putting them on hangers, reading another short story by Edgar Allen Poe, and listening to Kori rambling.

"This is just going to be great," Kori smiled ear to ear, as she folded up a blue silk nightgown, "You know, Raven, _me_ living _here_. In the same house as _you_, and your _brothers_, and your _sister_, and next door to _Gar,_ and down the street from _Vic_," Kori threw her head back, overwhelmed with joy.

"Uh-huh," Raven nodded, Kori's words went in one of her ears and out of the other.

"And we can go to parties together, and stay up late," Kori babbled, "And do each others hair and makeup, and borrow each others clothes..."

"...That sounds nice, Kori," Raven mumbled, and before she got too into her book, she heard a small single

Thump.

"What was that?" Raven inquired, looking up from her book at Kori.

"What?" Kori asked, putting one of her shirts on a hanger.

Thump.

"That noise," Raven replied, shutting her book.

Thump.

"I heard it," Kori pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them, afraid.

Thump.

"There," she pointed to Raven's window, "It's coming from the window."

Raven hopped down from her bed and knelt down at her window, and lifted it up. She saw Richard standing there, a handful of rocks, and his soccer ball by his foot.

Raven turned to Kori, "It's Rich," she told her. Raven couldn't even believe the words that came out of her mouth.

"What?" Kori ran and knelt down on the right side of Raven and she, too, saw Rich standing there in Raven's backyard.

"What are you doing here?" Raven asked, she kept her voice a normal tone, not wanting to alert her brothers. She wasn't really angry that Rich was there -she didn't really want to be rude to him anymore- she was mostly surprised. And it showed on her face that she wasn't mad, and in her voice, it was normal.

"You know, just hangin' around," Rich shrugged and a silly smile played about his face.

"What do you want?" Raven questioned, her elbows propped up on her window sill and her head resting in her hands. She really was curious as to what a little a rich boy was doing in her neighborhood.

Rich took a pause and kicked his soccer ball up behind him, and it landed in his hand, which was behind his back, ready to catch the ball. "Come and walk with me." He was hoping with all his might that Raven said yes -although he didn't show it on his face. But, he had a pretty good feeling that she would flat out refuse.

"N-" Raven was interrupted when Kori grabbed her arm and pulled her down out of view.

"What are you doing?" Kori hissed, "Say yes. Don't worry, I'll cover for you, duh." Kori wasn't about to let her friend turn down this opportunity. She had to at least try to be friends with Richard whether she liked it or not.

"No, I don't wanna walk with him," Raven explained, trying to escape Kori's death grip, and Raven realized that Kori was a lot stronger than she looked.

"Why not?" Kori asked, tightening her hold on Raven's arm.

"Because I don't," Raven strained, pulling her whole body away from Kori.

"Not a good enough reason," Kori captured Raven's head in her arm, and covered her mouth with her hand. Raven pinched and dug into Kori's skin, trying to free herself, but Kori held Raven's hands away with her free arm, and kept them locked in hers. Kori hopped up into view for Richard, "She'd love to," Kori smiled innocently as she freed Raven, who gasped for air.

"Why did you do that?" Raven hissed, rubbing the spot on her arm that was already becoming a bruise, "We need to have a serious talk about the things we do and don't do in the Roth house."

"And we will," Kori grabbed Raven's feet and put them through the window, "As soon as you get back."

"What? No!" Kori lifted Raven's back and began to push her out the window. "Kori stop!" Raven commanded, and stirred in Kori's grasp, "Don't make me hurt you!" Kori didn't listen, she continued to force Raven out the window.

"Rich! Heads up!" Kori shouted to him, and forced the rest of Raven through the window, and outside. Kori stuck her neck out, hanging out the window, just in time to see Raven land right on top of Rich, who didn't catch her. They tumbled over on the ground.

Rich untangled himself from Raven, and got onto his feet. He held out a hand to assist Raven, and she accepted it.

Raven dusted off her clothes when she was standing upright again, "Kori!" she shouted, "That, was _definitely,_ a _don't_!"

"Whatever," Kori giggled, "You two kids have fun now," she waved innocently to them and -after receiving a death glare from Raven, and laughing even more- she closed the window back down.

"What's Kori doing here?" Rich questioned, rubbing his neck which Raven nearly broke when she landed on him.

"She's living here until her house is fixed," Raven replied, pulling her shirt down before running her hands through her hair.

"In your room?" he inquired, kicking his soccer ball back and forth from his foot to his hands.

"Yea, that's another thing, how do you know which room is mine?" Raven asked, mulling over her question which she realized she already knew the answer to.

"Vic and Gar," they both said simultaneously, shrugging, and Raven rolled her eyes.

"So where are we going?" Raven inquired as she walked through the back gate, which Rich was holding open for her.

"Walking," Rich replied, shutting the gate after they were both through it, "Duh."

"No shit Sherlock," Raven said, her amethyst eyes rolling back once more, "I mean, walking where?"

"...Wherever the wind takes us," Rich smiled, "Just come on." He led her onto the sidewalk. To be frank, Rich didn't really have any idea where he wanted to take Raven. He was just escaping his mansion, his brother, and his father's evil fiance at the soccer field, and somehow ended up in her backyard afterward.

Raven heard his answer and she wanted to spin around like a little girl pretending to be a fairy. She wanted to pretend like she had nothing to worry about. No school, no boys, no friends, no troubles. But, of course, that would never happen, but pretending never hurt anybody. "I like that answer," Raven admitted, "It makes me feel..." She was searching through her mind for the right word to explain her thoughts.

"Free," Rich finished for her. He saw the way her mouth slightly curved when he answered her question a few moments ago, the way her eyes drifted back into paradise, and he knew the exact way she was feeling. What everyone longed to feel forever.

"Exactly," Raven agreed. He summed up her feelings perfectly for her. That's just the way she felt about his answer. It made her feel as though she wouldn't have to worry about anything. Like, she'd be lost forever, and not have a care in the world as to where she was.

"Say things like that, Grayson, and we'll get along," Raven informed him, her voice friendly.

"Whatever you say, Raven," Rich agreed, "I just want to make it up to you."

"Make what up to me?" Raven inquired.

"I was a jerk, and I'm sorry," he apologized, "Forgive me?"

"If it'll make up for that big bruise underneath your eye, then yes."

"Sweet," Rich continued to skillfully play around with his soccer ball, "By chance, would happen to be able to play soccer?"

"What are you asking?" Raven questioned.

"Do you know how to play soccer?"

"Yes, I once scored six points in a playoff game for the school. Yea, I was captain of Varsity," Raven bragged, catching the ball as it was in mid air and taking it away from Rich.

"No way," Rich said in disbelief.

"Yea, and the same year, I looked at my cheese nips and thought of the Pythagorean Theorem," Raven scoffed, "So gullible."

"Pythagorean Theorem, ha ha," Rich single handedly stole the ball away from her, "Do you want me to teach you how to play?"

"And give you a reason to brag about being a hot shot soccer player?" Raven pointed out, "Yeah right, I don't think so buddy boy."

"No," he dripped with sarcasm, "I just want to show you how the pros do it."

"Oh, the pros eh?" Raven rolled her eyes, "Cocky much?"

"Okay, so how about a friendly game, just you and me?"

"Right, us, friendly," Raven scoffed, "You can't even make me laugh."

"Wanna bet?" Rich came closer to her on the sidewalk.

"What are you doing?" Raven took a few steps away from him, "Back off, Grayson."

"What's that tone?" Rich filled the space between them, dropping his soccer ball, "I think it's time for a visit from the tickle monster!" He began to tickle Raven all over -or at least in every place that's appropriate for friends.

Raven fought him at first, but then, his fingers wiggling all over her began to be too much to fight off. She couldn't hold in her laughter, and she let her mind take over. Raven fell into a fits of laughter. Her laugh sounded in Richard's ears like chiming bells. And it echoed through the dryly cold street, and bounced off of everything around them. He grabbed her and pulled them both over on the ground, and continued to tickle her.

A few minutes later, Rich finally stopped tickling Raven. He released her and she stood up from the ground and dusted herself off.

"You jerk," she pouted, folding her arms across her chest, "Why did you do that?"

"Because," he stood up and joined her, "I wanted hear you laugh," he sarcastically reached at her stomach, as if he were going to tickle her again, and she swatted his hand away.

"Well, was it everything you expected?" Raven asked, still pouting.

"Actually," Rich bent over and picked up his soccer ball, "Yes, it was very cute, little birdy Raven."

Raven rolled her eyes, sarcastically, "Whatever, Grayson."

"Whatever, Roth," Rich smirked, "How's about a game of soccer sometime?"

"I don't want to play soccer," Raven refused, stopping on the sidewalk.

"Does a certain little Roth girl need another visit from the tickle monster?" Rich warned, threateningly moving his wiggling fingers closer to her.

"Fine," Raven rolled her eyes at his smirking face, "Another day." She looked around and saw that the sun was starting to set.

"You really should be getting home," Rich read her mind, and they turned around back towards Raven's house.

A few minutes later, Rich and Raven were standing in her backyard, Raven with a handful of rocks, pegging her own window.

She saw Kori open the window, but continued throwing rocks and one hit Kori right between the eyes.

"Ouch, Raven," Kori rubbed where the rock had just struck her, "You hit me with a rock."

"And you pushed me out of a window," Raven let the rocks fall from her hand, "We're nowhere near even."

Richard chuckled and knelt down so that Raven could climb onto his shoulders, "Oh yeah, Raven," Richard remembered as he stood with Raven on his shoulders, "So, after the ceremony for my dad's knew COO, he's having a gala at our house. And I was wondering if you could go with me?"

Kori leaned out of the window and reached for Raven, who clasped onto her hands. Rich moved Raven's leg's off of his shoulders and pushed her up by the feet, further towards Kori, who pulled Raven up to where she was sitting on the window sill, her legs dangling outside the house.

"It's not as bad as it seems. A gala is just a party filled with nicely dressed rich people. And I'm sick of having to dance with my brother since the girls there are either way too old or way too young for me. So, will you come with me?"

Raven gave him a smile, "Like a date?" she asked, swinging one of her legs inside her room.

"No, no, no, no, no," Rich shook his head, "It's just friends...hanging out. Completely innocent. And besides, you're just doing me a favor so my date won't be Riley..._again._"

Raven climbed all the way in her window, and sat on her knees, still visible to Rich.

Raven gave him a sweet, genuine smile, "Goodnight, Grayson," and with that, and the smile still on her face, Raven shut her window.

* * *

Whew! Longest chapter yet! It was a whole eighteen pages. I worked really hard on it, and I really hoped you enjoyed it. Please review and tell me what you think.

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-GothicPrincess

* * *

_There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness. _

_~Friedrich Nietzsche_


	6. The White Camellias

Okay, so it's been awhile. But, before you kill me, let me explain. Okay, so as I stated before, I have five AP classes. And I have been having major major assignments and tests in all those classes, and I haven't had time to write at all. And with Christmas break coming up, I'll have more time to write, and hopefully I will use that time. So, expect an update sooner this time. Anyways, Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_Love is much like a wild rose, beautiful and calm, but willing to draw blood in its defense._

_~Mark Overby _

_Chapter six: **The White Camellias**_

* * *

Thursday morning came considerably fast for all the GCH students whom had received time off as a result of the earthquake.

The Junior Varsity cheerleaders giggled as they ran passed Kori and Raven in the hallway, most of them being Freshmen and Sophomores. While the Varsity cheerleaders were plastering the school's colors on the walls.

The boy athletes, of all sports, (who's names where posted everywhere) were about, speaking of nothing but the upcoming seasons.

Kori would have immediately conversed with them, but two things kept her from doing so. Number one, she and Raven were on their way to the "Upperclassmen only Common Room" or UCR. And number two, she was dying inside to know what happened between Raven and Rich.

"Raven, you never told me what happened that day with Richard," Kori said, as she and Raven turned the corner, leaving the main hallway, and entering the freshman wing.

"Oh right," Raven smirked. She moved her index finger next to her forehead and slowly shook it in sarcastic remembrance. "That was punishment for PUSHING ME OUT OF A WINDOW!" Raven's smirk faded away and she glared angrily at Kori.

"Oh get over it, Raven, you weren't hurt. And besides, I've heard that you've done at lot worse things to other people in the past," Kori pointed out. She waved an accusing finger in front of Raven's face.

Raven let her anger fade away, and recognized that Kori was right. "Details, details," she mumbled.

"Yeah," Kori nodded, smirking, "Now spill. I'm dying to know what happened."

"He invited me to go somewhere with him," Raven replied. She enjoyed seeing Kori suffer from the vagueness in her answer.

"WHERE? WHERE? WHERE?" Kori pleaded as they entered the UCR.

"It doesn't matter Kori. I'm not even sure that I want to go," Raven shrugged, frowning. She took a seat on the leather couch next to the fireplace. Kori fetched Raven and herself a cup of hot chocolate from the coffee cart.

"Well," Kori situated herself to the right of Raven, "Why not? I think he's a nice guy." Kori handed her the hot chocolate.

"Because, it's just going to be awkward. I mean, me, in a room full of rich people," Raven replied, sipping her hot chocolate and enjoying the warm beverage as it slid down her throat.

"So let me guess, he invited you to a gala," Kori eyed her knowingly as she placed her drink on the coffee table in front of them.

"Yes," Raven answered, not pleased in the least bit.

"Ugh, lucky," Kori nudged Raven's elbow, "A gala would be so much fun."

Raven sat her cup on the table next to Kori's, "Then you go with him," she looked up at Kori.

"Ew," Kori crinkled her nose, "_Me?_ Go with _Rich_? _Alone_? Ew. He's too...out there, you know? And then, at the same time, laid back. I wouldn't have fun with just me and him... But you! You and Richard would have an awesome time together!"

"But _you, _would fit in with those people. But me...I just...won't. I mean...look at me." Raven gestured to herself_. _She was dressed in bleached denim skinny jeans, a black and white plaid shirt, and her combat boots with the tongue folded over.

"And when I look at you, I see...Raven." Kori placed her hand on Raven's shoulder, "And Raven is a unique, fun, and beautiful girl. And my best friend. And I think just Raven...is just perfect."

"Really?" Raven asked.

"Of course," Kori let her hand fall, "And that's why Richard likes you."

"He likes me?"

"Duh." Kori lightly smacked the back of Raven's neck. "Raven, sometimes you make me wonder how you are a merit scholar."

Raven rolled her eyes and two very familiar faces came into the room. Vic and Gar joined the two ladies by the fireplace. Gar stood behind the couch on Kori's side, while Vic sat to the right of Raven.

"Hey guys," Kori greeted them for the first time today. Gar's mother had allowed him to borrow her car, and he drove them to school that morning.

"Good morning, gorgeous." Gar pulled a box of chocolates and a dozen red roses from behind his back, and held them out on Kori's left side.

"Aw! How sweet," Kori smiled and gratefully accepted her gifts.

"You're welcome, beautiful." Gar situated himself to the left of her, his eyes pulsating pink hearts.

"And I couldn't let you be left out, Little Rae, my other best friend," Vic handed her a single red Carnation.

"Thank you," Raven faked a smile. A few seconds later, she lightly grabbed his shirt and pulled him to where his ear was close to her mouth. "You guys didn't steal the flowers from a cemetery again, did you?" she asked suspiciously, but only loud enough for Vic to hear.

"No," Vic replied, chuckling. "Now hands off." He thumped her hand away from his jersey, "You're wrinkling the captain's uniform."

Raven rolled her eyes, and twirled the flower by the stem in her hands and the bell sounded.

Kori stood, and so did Gar, and after hugging him, she friendly kissed his nose. "Sweet boy," Kori pinched his cheeks before she and Raven waltzed out of the UCR.

After they were out of sight, Gar's knees began to wobble, his eyes became pulsating hearts again, and his hand pressed the spot Kori had just kissed. "Hhhhhaaaaauuuuuu!" he moaned, dreamily, watching where Kori had previously stood.

"You alright, bro?" Vic asked. Before he could get another word in, Gar fainted and fell into his arms.

"Gar!" Vic laughed, lying his limp body on the floor, "Gar!...ha ha!...Dude!...Get Up!"

* * *

Raven sat, her head resting in her palm, while she was in her first period class, physics, bored out of her mind. Today was a review day, so, since she had a photographic memory and remembered everything, Raven was not interested in anything Mr. Dabney was _re_teaching.

_This day just can't get any better_ Raven thought, picking at the stem of the Carnation she'd been given.

Raven yawned, and when she opened her eyes, she saw that Mr. Dabney had been interrupted by a teenage boy whom had come into the room. The boy was carrying a vase of White Camellias, and Raven smiled. She loved White Camellias, they were her favorite flowers.

After a moment of discussing (inaudibly to the class) the matter with Mr. Dabney, the boy turned to Raven, the vase of flowers resting his his outstretched hands.

"These are for you," he placed them in front Raven on her desk. After ridding his hands of the flowers, the purple and gold card that had been in his hands underneath the vase, was now visible. He placed the card in Raven's palm, "Enjoy." And with that, he left the room, and Mr. Dabney went back to teaching.

Raven smiled after everything had calmed down, and the class was no longer eyeing her and her gift. She caressed the petals of silk on the White Camellias that sat in front of her. They were even more beautiful than she remembered. The last time she'd seen these flowers was the day of her mother's funeral, which was a little over four years ago.

She allowed the warm feeling inside her to stay as she opened the palatial card. The card had a deep purple background, trimmed in gold fabric that all met into a bow on the left side.

Raven read through the card, and saw that it was an invitation, cordially inviting her to a gala at the Wayne Manor, with Richard Grayson's signature at the bottom.

Raven closed the card, and sat it on her desk. She began having an internal conflict with herself. One part of her said go for it, while the other said deny it. And Raven didn't know which part was the right one.

A few minutes later, in walked another teenage boy, different from the one before. He was carrying a box of expensive box of Rose Noire chocolates. Also a favorite of Raven's.

The boy smiled, apologized for the interruption, and placed the chocolates on Raven's desk, which was at the very front and center of the room.

Raven ignored the looks she was receiving from her piers, not caring what any of them thought. She stared at the chocolates, not expecting them to be the real things. But, after reading over the words on the box (which were written in French) she saw that indeed they were the real things. She was taken aback. The last time she'd had these chocolates was two years ago, when her father brought them to her.

Raven began to have another conflict about the situation. She she go with Richard to the gala or not? What would happen if she didn't go? What if she did? All of these were questions Raven tried to answer for herself. Knowing that the answer wasn't promising.

Barely a minute later, another teenage boy walked in, different from both boys before. He was holding in his hands a vase of White Camellias and a box of Rose Noire chocolates. He placed them on Raven's desk, which became filled after he did so.

Raven, baffled, eyed her chocolates, as another boy walked in, carrying a vase of White Camellias and expensive Rose Noire chocolates. And behind him, another boy came in, carrying same things, and another boy behind him, and another boy behind him, and another boy after him and so on...

Mr. Dabney, appalled by what was happening, through his chalk to the ground, and watched as the expensive gifts for Raven were placed all over his classroom.

Raven looked around, ignoring the "awe" and "that's so sweet" comments she was receiving from her classmates. She slowly shook her head as she turned back around in her seat, overwhelmed at the lengths Richard would go to.

_Denying him is going to be a little harder than I thought._

* * *

"So did you like your gifts?" Richard asked Raven. The two them were in their chemistry class, working on their project together.

Raven had yet to break Rich's heart with her answer. Obviously, she was dreading it; Rich had done very outgoing and thoughtful things for her, just so she would go to that gala with him. This definitely was going to be a disappointment for him, and it would stay on Raven's conscience forever.

"Don't you mean gifts? Plural to the nth degree," Raven corrected him. She poured a test tube of light blue chemicals into a beaker of water. Raven had yet to meet his gaze. Seeing that hopeful look in his eyes would only make her task all the more harder.

"Yes," Rich chuckled. He leaned over on their lab table and propped his elbow up. He dreamily watched Raven's every move as his head rested in the palm of his hand. Raven had no idea what she was doing to him just by the simple movements she was making. "Did you like them?"

"How did you know what my favorite things were? Vic and Gar?" Raven inquired, deliberately avoiding his question.

"No, not Vic and Gar. You know, I have other sources Raven. Ones that shall remain anonymous." he replied, smirking. He wrote down the results of the two two substances combining.

"Stalker."

"Nope, just a man with a mission," he corrected her this time.

"Well, how did you get the chocolates? The store in New York closed years ago, and the only other place to get them is...you did not." Raven finally looked at the teen to her right. She meet his generous stormy blue gaze and her heart broke into a million pieces.

"Yes I did. I had them flown in directly from France, just for you, love." Raven hurriedly turned her head away from him, afraid that the hurt she had on the inside would seep through and show on her face.

"Well, I bet Kori will sure get a kick out of all this," Raven struggled to say as she fiddled with the empty test tube, "She certainly will enjoy decorating the house with all those flowers."

"Yes, but your opinion is the only one that matters to me. Did you like them?" he repeated, this time determined to get her to answer the question.

"Well, yes, of course I liked them but..." Raven could find the words to deny him with. Her mind went blank, and she was glad when he continued with the conversation.

"That's great. The only thing I wanted was to make you happy. And I see that..."

Richard's words became muffled and distant as Raven met his eyes again. This time, his eyes were filled with joy, and hers were immediately filled with pity. Denying him was most definitely going to crush his spirits, and break his heart a million times over.

"And don't worry, if you don't want to go to the gala with me..." Richards words became audible once more for Raven, and she couldn't stop her next words from hopping out of her mouth.

"I'll go," she spat.

"You will!" he Richard exclaimed and was shushed by Raven.

"This is going to be great," he quieted his voice.

"But," Raven put in, and he paid close attention, "Kori, Vic, and Gar have to come too."

"Done," Rich hopped up from the table as the bell sounded, "See you tomorrow night, Raven."

Richard sprinted out of the classroom with his fists thrown into the air, the rush of victory soaring through him. And Raven could hear him whooping and hollering down the hall as she gathered her things. She couldn't help but to let a smile creep onto her lips. She'd made this day the best of Richard's life by a simple slip of the tongue. But, no matter how much she wanted to be, Raven couldn't bring herself to regret her mistake. In actuality, she was...glad she'd messed up.

* * *

Gar rambled on and on as he and Raven strolled over to his mom's car on the school's parking lot. It was dark outside, they'd been at the school for hours longer than everybody else. Since Vic had to babysit his cousin after school, Raven was helping Gar with his science project, and time got away from them.

Raven, ignoring Gar's babbling, reached into her pocket for her phone to call Kori, and she realized that her phone wasn't there.

"Damnit," her exclamation drew Gar's attention and he stopped speaking for the first time since school ended. Raven felt into her other pockets; her phone wasn't there either.

"What is it?" Gar asked, opening the car door on the driver's side.

"I can't find my phone," Raven replied, searching her backpack.

"Let me help," Gar smirked and reached for Raven's back pockets and she violently slapped his hand away.

"No, I think I left it in the library," Raven replied as Gar rubbed his throbbing hand.

"I'll get for you," he offered, shutting the door and turning to go into the school building, "You go ahead and get in the car. It's cold out and I don't want you to get sick." Raven stopped him by putting her hand in front of his torso.

"No, it's fine, I'll get it," Raven turned on her heels towards the school building.

"Alright," Gar opened the door once more as she walked off, "I'll keep the car cold so we can get all hot, sweaty, and spontaneous once you come back," Gar whistled perverted like to her and she flipped him off without turning around.

* * *

Once inside the school building, Raven saw that the lights had been shut off and the janitor was nowhere to be found. Shaking off the eerie feeling of being alone in the dark hallways and corridors, Raven made her way to the library.

She felt along the walls, searching for the light switch to the room, but she could not find one.

Mentally cursing everything good in the forsaken world, Raven searched around for the table she and Gar were previously sitting at.

She unsuccessfully tried to maneuver through the dark maze of tables, chairs, and bookshelves, but she kept bumping into everything that was in front of her.

Raven froze, wiped the sweat from her brow, and took a seat in the dark in a chair that, thankfully, was behind her.

She took a few deep breaths, pacing herself for another round of hopeless searching.

But, Raven heard a small thud near the back of the library. Her head whipped around towards the source of the sound. She fell completely silent, and so did the room, but, she could hear the faintest sound of someone panting.

A shiver crept up her spine, and she slowly got to her feet, her eyes never leaving the corner of the library, where the breathing was coming from.

Slowly, and extra carefully, Raven walked through the maze. Her hands out in front of her, feeling anything that might be in her path before she hit it.

As Raven neared the corner, she was about two feet from it, the panting got softer and softer.

Raising a curious brow, and her eyes slightly squinted in suspicion, she took two more slow baby steps to the corner. She was but a foot from it, and the panting stopped all together.

Raven, in the dead silence of the room, slowly lifted her hand from her side. She reached her hand out in front her. It was slowly, very slowly, nearing the corner. Her hand froze, it was about a centimeter from the source, and she waited. The moment was intense, and Raven afraid. Afraid of what would meet her hand.

But the determined little teen gathered up her courage, and her hand started again, to move towards the source.

Raven's hand was beginning to feel heat radiating off of...something. Her hand froze once more, and she was just about to start it up again, when the lights snapped on.

Startled, Raven whipped around to the door, to see Gar standing there, his hand on the switch of which she was unable to find earlier.

"Would you come on? I'd like to leave today please," he watched Raven, panting, in cold sweat, and even paler than usual.

Raven, ignoring him, quickly snapped her head back around to the corner. Overwhelmed, she let her hand fall as she breathed slowly and deeply and stared at what she saw in the corner. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. What had been there before (or so she believed had been there) was gone.

"Raven, are you alright?" Gar neared her, picking up her phone from one of the tables on the way.

"Um...yeah," she turned back around, "I just...thought that...nevermind."

"Alright, Sherlock, let's go," he put his arm around her shoulder and led her across the room, "It's nothing to be afraid of."

"Yeah, it's nothing," Raven shook the thoughts out of her head, and spared the corner one last glance. And for a second, a split second, she saw a flash of bright pink, and then it disappeared altogether.

"Yeah, it's...probably just...my...imagination." she said to Gar, allowing him drag her out the room. But, she knew something had happened back there. She didn't know exactly what, but she knew that it did happen. But, like so many times before, she let it be.

* * *

End Chapter

So, did you like it? Please review and tell me what you think. Seriously, reviews are accepted and appreciated.

And I have to thank **RukiaRae **for leaving me the longest review I have ever gotten on any of my stories. Thank you so much, and I promise that all your questions will be answered as the story progresses. But I like how much you paid attention, and noticed the simplest details. And from now on, anyone who leaves a review that was as long as hers, I will thank you in the same way I thanked her.

1. Press the review button  
2. Write whether you thought it was good or bad  
3. Write the things you thought I did good or can improve on  
4. Write your thoughts about Richard's surprise for Raven  
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_-GothicPrincess_

* * *

_Love is a symbol of eternity.  
__It wipes out all sense of time, destroying all memory of a beginning and all fear of an end._

_~Unknown_


	7. The Gala

Hey guys, thank you so much for all the reviews, favorites, alerts, and everything. Thank you, thank you all. And yeah, I did change the summary. The old one just wasn't working for me anymore. Anyways, here's the next chapter, Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans.

Summary: Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_Love comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith._

_~Timothy 1:5_

_Chapter seven:_ _**The Gala**_

* * *

Richard's chauffeur opened the door to the classy black Rolls Royce Phantom limousine and Rich stepped out onto Raven's driveway.

He popped the collar on his Calvin Klein tuxedo and ran his hand through a jet black forest of perfect curls and spikes. "How do I look, Preston?"

"Divine, sir," Preston replied in a strong British accent. He brushed off Rich's shoulder, and made a small circle around him, and nodded, impressed and he approved. "She's a very lucky girl, sir."

"No, no," Rich corrected him, "I'm a lucky man."

* * *

Arms locked, Raven and Kori gracefully and slowly walked down the staircase, the epitome of two angels.

Eagle emerged from the shadows, and stood next to Phoenix, who was on one knee, videotaping the moment.

They had never seen their sister look the way she did at that moment. She was always covered in makeup and dark clothes, but now, she had emerged from the darkness that had been hiding her true beauty.

Raven was enveloped in a dress of Caribbean blue color that darkened into a sea of dark blue as the dress cascaded down to her feet. The strapless dress shirred across her petite figure to the left. And crystal rhinestones covered the fabric over her cleavage and molded into the shape of a small diamond above her stomach.

Eagle smiled, with her hair pulled to a side chignon, Raven looked so much like his mother. And the chignon was even more spectacular because her bleached white streaks weaved through it, contrasting well with her jet black hair. And with the white flower pinned in front of the chignon by her right ear, her brilliant eyes stood out even more.

"Kori! You look beautiful!" Phoebe exclaimed. She ran over to the staircase, and held onto the banister on the left side, eagerly awaiting her sister and her friend.

Phoebe admired the senior with her hair pulled back on the right side with a crystal rhinestone barrette and deep red curls flowing down her left shoulder. Her curvacious body was pasted in a deep red silk dress that hugged her body and flared out around her feet.

Kori looked a lot more mature than Raven. Her sleeves where see-through beige fabric in which was dabbed with rhinestones. And a long see-through slit went from her chest to her feet on the front and back side of the dress, also of which was beige and dabbed with rhinestones. But the only things visible through the slit were her tan skin, belly button, and belly button piercing.

"No, Phoebe, they both look beautiful," Phoenix shut off the video camera and stood as the girls arrived at the bottom of the staircase. He held out his hand to Kori and Eagle held his to Raven, and they led the two young ladies into the living room.

The doorbell sounded through the silence of the room, "That's Rich," Raven let her hand fall from Eagle's, "Let's get this over with."

"Do I look okay?" Kori primped herself with the hand Phoenix wasn't holding.

"Absolutely stunning," Phoenix spun her around with his hand that was holding hers, and her dress flared in a perfect circle, coming to a gentle stop as did she.

"Thank you," Kori blushed, allowing her hand to fall gracefully to her side.

"_Today _please, Kori," Raven rushed her, with her hand waiting on the doorknob.

Kori sighed, and nearly floated over to Raven who opened the door, revealing Richard standing there, gawking at the normally Gothic girl.

"Rich," Raven said, bringing him from his daze, "Stop staring before you start drooling."

Richard cleared his throat, his cheeks turning scarlet, "You...uh...you look beautiful, Raven."

"Let's go, Grayson," Raven glided past him and over to the limo, waiting for him to follow, but, he just stood there, Kori beside him as he watched Raven. Completely in awe.

"Wake up, Rich," Kori snapped her fingers in front of his face, making him come to. Embarrassed, Rich popped his collar and turned to Kori.

"You look nice too, Kori," he said, and allowed her to drag him over to the limo. Which Preston now also stood next to, and opened the door, and out popped Vic and Gar, both of the sporting a black and white tux. The two of them were having a dispute over which girl's were hotter at the school.

"No way, bro," Gar violently shook his head, "Kyla is nowhere near as hot as Haley."

"Dude, Haley's a ditz. She can't even spell her name right," Vic thumped Gar's ear.

"And Kyla has more hair on her upper lip than you do," Gar thumped him back and they began to yell over each other, neither of them aware of their audience.

Kori, annoyed, cleared her throat, causing Vic and Gar's altercation to cease. Vic turned and apologized for Gar's childish behavior and bad taste in girls, while Gar's jaw dropped when he saw Kori standing there, looking like a million bucks.

The entire world melted away, and Gar could hear a choir of angels singing angelic "ah's" and all he could see was Kori standing there, surrounded by light from heaven, batting her eyelashes, her emerald green eyes on him. While in actuality, Kori was staring at him like he was a madman.

"Bro," Vic nudged him, attempting to bring him out of his daze, but all he did was cause Gar to topple over on the ground. While laughing, Vic pulled his friend back onto his feet, "Smooth one."

Kori giggled, and looped her arm with Gar's, and they climbed into the limo together.

"You look great, Little Rae," Vic complimented her as she climbed into the limo in front of him.

"Thanks Vic, and you clean up pretty nice yourself," Raven returned his courtesy as she settled near the window on the leather interior. Vic sat to her right, Kori next to him and Gar to Kori's right, while Rich sat across from her, still staring.

Raven looked away from him, pretending not to notice, and watched as Gar flirted with Kori, and Kori giggled, and Vic admired the limo's details.

Rich admired Raven's beauty. She was truly the most gorgeous girl he had ever seen in his seventeen years. This night with her, was going to be a night to remember for the rest of his days.

Raven, fed up with Richard's staring, looked over at him, "What, Grayson?"

He smiled idiotically, and walked across the limo, and situated himself next to her, really close.

Raven, uncomfortable and annoyed, hopped over away from him.

Rich, determined, hopped right back next to her, and she fled to the other side of the limo, where he followed her.

"Is there something you want?" she asked, very annoyed.

Rich tried to place his hand on her porcelain face, but she pushed his hand away, "Don't touch me." she simply said, "If all you ever want to do is make me happy, then don't put your hands on me."

"As you wish," Rich held his hands up, surrendering, and scooted away from her, "And besides, we're here."

Raven and her friends, all turned simultaneously and looked out of the window.

Raven was shocked by what she saw, but did not show it on her face.

They saw an enormous mansion approaching in the distance. Even from afar, it was humongous. Limos and palatial cars of all kind were parked all around, and fancy people with riches beyond imagination were about. And the house was surrounded by fall decorations -gigantic pumpkins, decorative hay bails in all shapes and sizes, scarecrows, and the trees were fall colors.

"Whoa! This house is totally wicked!" Gar exclaimed, his face plastered on the window.

"It is very grandiose," Kori complimented, "Thank you for inviting me Rich."

"You're welcome, Kor," Rich smiled, and put his lips next to Raven's ear and spoke only loud enough for her to hear. "What do you think, Raven? Nothings changed, your opinion is still the only one that matters to me."

"It's relatively imposing, I guess," Raven said, not wanting to encourage Rich or boost his confidence any. She pushed his face away from her with her hand.

"Relatively, Raven? Really?" Rich teased her, knowing that's not half of what she thought.

"You are so annoying," Raven kept her face from smiling, "Leave me alone."

"I don't intend to, but okay," he taunted her once more as Preston opened the door to the limo.

Kori looped her arm with Gar's and they disembarked from the limo together, Vic behind them. He made it clear that he wanted all the girls at the party to know that he was single.

"Come on, Raven," Rich held his arm out for Raven to take, "You are my date after all."

Raven rolled her eyes and reluctantly locked her arm with his, "Fine," she pouted as they strolled away from the limo, "But I'm not your date."

"Whatever you say," Rich led the way up the concrete path and the ten steps to his massive front door, where Albert courteously opened the door. Raven and Rich walked into the main room first, followed by Vic, and then Kori and Gar. And Rich led them into the grand ballroom. They walked slowly down the gigantic staircase, as it would only seem fitting to do so.

The capacious room was filled with people, all of them with their noses in the air, and dressed in the finest clothing money could buy.

"Well this isn't a surprise," Raven mumbled.

"What was that, Raven?" Rich asked.

"Oh, nothing," Raven replied, all too suspiciously. But Rich let it slide, and led her and their friends even slower to the bottom of the staircase.

The room was decorated with gold and white. The tables were scattered about, and people were dancing among them to the music from the dull band on the stage.

Raven and her companions reached the floor, and applauded along with the rest of the audience when the band finished the song they were playing and started another, the classic Latin waltz.

"May I have this dance, Gar?" Kori asked, knowing exactly what his answer would be.

"Of course you may," Gar led her to an area between some tables, and they waited for the downbeat to begin dancing with the crowd.

"Vic," Raven latched onto his arm, "Dance with me."

"No way, Rae," Vic eyed a group of blondes across the room, "I've got to stay available."

He fled from Raven's reach and over to the group of girls.

Raven huffed and turned back around to Rich, who was leaning casually against a table, taking a drink of the water that had sat there. "Come on, Raven, I'm not that bad. If you didn't want to come with me, then why did you say yes?"

Raven sat down in a chair, and Rich sat next to her. "I don't know, it's different now that I'm here. It's just, I feel so...out of place. I mean, I don't feel like, me." Raven snatched the flower from her hair, and placed it on the table, "And you obviously like me better this way. Everybody does, but me."

"No Raven. I like you just the way you were when I met you. And that's good enough for you, and it's more than enough for me. And even when I draw you, I draw you the way _I_ see you. And you're perfect to me, just the way you are."

"Show me your drawings again, Rich," Raven told him, and he grinned, showing his sparking white and perfectly straight teeth.

"What?" she asked, baffled.

"That was the first time you called me by my name," he replied, still smiling.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever _Grayson_, just show me the sketches please."

"Alright," Rich stood, "I'll be right back." he left the ballroom and went up to his bedroom and fetched a couple of his sketch books, and returned within five minutes.

While entering the ballroom a second time, Rich saw Raven standing over by the refreshments table, conversing with Vic, and he had to rub his eyes. Raven was dressed completely different from when he left.

He made his way over to her. She was now sporting her favorite color, black. A black dress and onyx jewelry. Her strapless dress stopped above her knees. Above her waist, the dress was sewn in bandage style with black and a deep violet. And hugged her curvacious figure bellow her waist. And, of course, she was wearing her combat boots. And her hair had been pulled from the chignon and was now hanging to her shoulders, slightly wavy, and her bleached white streaks really stood out.

He cleared his throat, "Ahem. Raven," he gained her attention and she turned to him, just now being aware of his presence, with a smile still on her face from when she'd been laughing at something Vic had voiced.

"Um...Raven. Where did you get that dress? It's nice," he said, unsure of how to start the conversation without insulting her.

"Really," she looked down at herself, "It's amazing what Kori can do with a couple of table cloths and a pair of scissors."

"She sure did a great job. You look absolutely gorgeous," Rich stepped closer to her, "You look like the Raven I know. The girl that fell head over heels for."

Rich lifted his hand and moved a few loose strands of hair from Raven's face. She began to feel uncomfortable and wanted to tell him to knock it off. But, she couldn't bring herself to push him away...not now, and not again.

"Enough chit chat Grayson," Raven stepped back, taking his sketch books and putting them on the table, "Let's have it out on the dance floor. Unless, you're not _man _enough to dance."

She circled around him, they had now traded places with Raven being the predator and Rich being the cornered prey. He watched her as she slightly squinted her eyes and lifted her eyebrow, proposing a challenge. One of which Rich accepted by taking her hand and leading her onto the dance floor, where the room was now dancing the classic modern waltz.

Raven allowed him to lead her into the dance on the downbeat. Her right hand was positioned on his shoulder and her left hand was placed in his right hand while his left hand was resting on her waist.

Rich noticed how good of a dancer Raven was as she followed his leading. Her steps were so graceful that it seemed as though she were floating, and the only thing keeping her from leaving the ground, was his hold on her.

It was easy from them to follow the simple 1 2 3 beat of the music, and when the song ended, neither of them were the least bit tired.

* * *

About an hour later, Rich and Raven found themselves in the middle of the ballroom dancing the famous salsa along with the rest of the frolicking couples.

When dance ended, both of them were out of breath and in dire need of a break. Raven, slowly panting, turned away from Rich and started to walk off, but he stopped her by grabbing her hand and pulling her back toward him as the next song began to play. The Argentine Tango, Richard's specialty.

"One more," he said to her, bringing her into the dance, expecting her to be a damsel.

Rich, being a member of a family without limited means, had been exposed to many different cultures, discovering different styles of music and dancing. He'd traveled all over the world in his seventeen years, and from each place he visited, he learned their ways of doing things. And he'd never really met a person who shared his varied dancing skills, until today.

Richard broke the out into the Salida, the opening moves and, to his astonishment, so did Raven. She grinned at the surprised expression on his face and they continued with the sensual dance.

Raven easily followed his lead, even though he was simply improvising, which is why the Argentine Tango is a complicated dance.

Rich tried to throw her off by throwing her trick steps or really hard ones to follow, but Raven was not phased. Every move he made, she countered it, no matter how perplexing it was.

A few minutes later, the music and the dance came to its halting stop, and the two's final pose was full of tension. Raven's right leg was lifted and laced around Rich's left leg. His hands hand moved to her lower back, and their faces were an inch apart and their lustful breaths were one.

Raven immediately pulled back, leaving about a foot between them, and tried to catch her breath.

"Drinks?" Richard suggested, breaking the tension.

Raven nodded and followed him over to the refreshments table. After replenishing themselves in silence, a boy approached them, a boy with very many similarities to Richard.

"Riley," Rich said to him, "Go away, I'm busy right now."'

"Yeah, like a really came over here to talk to you," Riley rolled his eyes and turned to Raven, who was leaning against the table with a glass between her fingers.

"I wanted to introduce myself to your friend," he held his hand out quirky like for Raven to shake, "I'm Riley Grayson."

"Raven," she gently placed her hand in his, and eyed him like he was a madman, "Raven Roth."

"And what would a raven-haired beauty like you be doing with little Richard here?" Riley asked, and both he and Raven looked over at Rich, who was steaming mad and annoyed.

"He's my date," Raven hopped over to Rich and locked her arm with his. She was trying to stay unavailable for the antithesis of Vic's reasons, to _avoid_ the opposite sex that is attracted to her.

Riley frowned, disappointed, "Well, I guess I overestimated you. Any girl who falls for Rich isn't good enough for me. I like to aim high, and avoid the _lowest common denominator._"

"Oh, so you grew balls all of a sudden!" Rich unlocked his arm with Raven's and stepped up to his brother.

All in one quick motion, Rich grabbed his brother's shoulder, and hit him with an uppercut right in the abdomen. Riley doubled over in pain, and Rich stepped back and grabbed Raven's hand.

"Lesson number two, Riley, don't pick a fight if you don't have the fight in you, and _never _insult your brother's date."

Richard led Raven over to a table, and they sat down next to each other; Rich was still boiling mad.

"Come on, Grayson, it's okay, that little quirky twerp didn't hurt my feelings," Raven tried to talk some sense into him, "I'm tough as nails remember. You're overreacting."

"No, I'm _under_reacting...I should have snapped that little twig in half. The nerve of that little pansy," Rich was frustrated, "Did you hear what he said to you?"

"Yes and...you remember when you said that the only opinion that matters to you is mine?" Raven had finally found the solution.

"Yeah."

"Well, I think that what you're brother said was very rude, but, I didn't care about any word that came out of his mouth," Raven finally saw Rich's hard expression smooth out, "Nor did I believe them."

He sighed, "I'm sorry, Raven," he apologized, "It's just, I care about you."

"Grayson," Raven rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Say my name," Rich smiled back, "My real name. I like it when you call me by my first name."

"No way, _Grayson_," Raven refused, "You'll start getting cocky if I use your name all the time."

"Am I going to have to tickle it out of you?" Rich held out his wiggling fingers towards her, "We don't need a repeat of the other day, do we?"

"Not here, Grayson," Raven smacked his hands away,

"You know I will Raven," he teased her, "All you have to do to stop it is say my name."

"Okay a nickname," Raven offered, knowing she couldn't stop his tickling fingers of fury.

"A nickname...," he considered it, "Alright little birdy Raven. But make it something like, Midnight Cobra...or Big Daddy...or OG, cause, you know, I am an original gangsta..."

"Robin," Raven said, "Not a snake and definitely not my "Big Daddy". But, a _little birdy Robin."_

"No, no, no, not Robin." he refused, "Call me Rich, or I will release the tickle monster."

"You touch me with "the tickle monster" again, and I will wring your neck," Raven threatened. She didn't glower at him, and she didn't grimace. She simply stated it, because she meant it.

"Robin it is," Rich agreed, fearing for his life, "But like a super hero name. Like Robin the..."

"Boy Wonder," Raven offered, "Robin, Boy Wonder."

"Why that?" Rich asked, smiling.

"Sounds catchy," Raven shrugged, "And this reminds me. I never got to see your drawings."

"That's right, where are they?" Rich asked, checking his person.

"I left them over there on the..." Raven pointed over to the refreshments table where she had previously put the sketch books. They weren't there. "They're gone," she said, and looked back over to Rich, "I'm so sorry, Robin."

"It isn't your fault. And besides, I'm positive we'll find them," he reassured her, "There's not a lot of places they could be."

They stood up, and began searching all over the ballroom for Richard's drawings. Kori, Gar, and Vic joined in and helped.

They searched every inch of that ballroom, and Richards sketch books were nowhere to be found. But, when looking over the room a second time, Raven saw that they were in the exact same spot that she put them on the refreshment table.

"There they are," Raven led Rich, whom had been her searching partner over to the table. He picked up the books and Raven scanned over the room to find her friends to tell them they had found Rich's drawings, when she laid eyes on Jinx. Jinx's eyes met Raven's for an intense second, before she suddenly found a glass to be very interesting and broke their eye contact.

"That's weird," Richard said, gaining Raven's attention. She looked down at what he was doing, and saw that he had sat the books down on the table and was bent over flipping through them.

"What?" Raven asked, looking over his shoulder.

"I can't find any of my drawings of you. Huh. I could have sworn I had a few in here," he knitted his eyebrows, perplexed as he double checked the book. "Maybe I just grabbed the wrong books from my bedroom." He shut the book and turned around, leaning casually against the table.

"Maybe not," Raven mumbled.

"Pardon?" he looked over at her, meeting her amethyst gaze.

"Nothing. Never mind" Raven shook her thoughts and assumptions away and changed the tone of the conversation. "Obviously, they weren't that important to you, you couldn't even keep up with them."

"If you weren't smirking and dripping with sarcasm right now, I'd be mad," Richard sported his signature smirked.

"Wipe that smirk off your face, Robin, before I do it for you. And tell me, why is Jinx here?" Raven folded her arms across her stomach and shifted her weight to her left side.

"Jealous much?" Richard popped a grape into his mouth.

"You wish, now tell me," she quirked her eyebrow.

"If you _have_ to know, Miss Nosy, her dad is the new COO. It only seemed fitting that she be invited," Rich replied, now he was the one dripping with sarcasm.

"Well, can I be honest with you?" Raven asked, dead serious.

"Of course," Rich answered, joining in the serious mood.

"I don't really like Jinx," Raven admitted.

"Why?"

"She just makes me feel...the other day in the library...I don't know. Something is just off about her..."

"Shush." Richard silenced her by placing his finger on her soft lips. "There's something to everybody Raven. Everybody has something about them that differentiates them from others. And it's not cool to down someone because of that."

"But she—"

"Hush."

"And when—"

"Quiet."

"I saw—"

"Don't."

"But I—"

"_SILENCE_."

"Fine," Raven sighed, defeated and Rich removed his finger from her mouth.

"Now, little birdy Raven, we've talked, we've argued, we've danced, we've kicked Riley's ass, but we haven't eaten," Richard held out his hand for Raven to take, "Shall we, my gorgeous date?"

"I'm not your date," Raven clarified, "And we shall." She took his hand and he led her out of the ballroom through a door hidden in the back.

He led her through his mansion and they reached and elevator which they climbed inside. Richard stood in front of the buttons so that Raven was unable to see which one he would push.

"Where are we going, Robin?" Raven asked, taking her hand from him.

"Wherever the wind takes us, Raven," he answered, "Hopefully it brings us to the stars tonight. I think the night sky is the most beautiful in the autumn, particularly in October."

"No funny business, Grayson. I'm not your date, I'm not your girl, I'm your friend," Raven clarified.

"Agreed, no funny business," Richard said as the elevator stopped. He stepped out first, and Raven right behind him. They were in a small corridor. It was barely big enough for the two of them, and there was a door at the end.

"Close your eyes," Richard instructed her, and placed his hands over her closed eyelids, "No peaking."

He opened the door and Raven immediately felt the piercing sting of the cold night air against her bare skin.

"Alright, you can look," Richard removed his hands from Raven's eyes and they fluttered open.

"Robin, it's beautiful."

* * *

Gar stood on the outskirts of the ballroom, extremely bored and pissed, with his arms folded across his chest as he furiously watched Kori dance with one guy after the other.

He didn't know why he was mad, never had he been jealous because of a girl. He needed to talk to Vic, get his mind off this.

He left the spot he was in and searched around the room for Vic and found him talking to a group of brunettes.

"Dude, Vic, I need to talk to you, man," Gar nudged Vic's shoulder, ignoring the snotty girls that surrounded him and his friend.

"Later Gar, I'm busy," Vic told him and continued talking to the girls, "And so there I was, the last three seconds of the game, and we were one touchdown away from being the undefeated champions of Gotham City-"

"C'mon dude, bros before hoes," Gar reminded him, insulting the girls who gasped and fled from the two boys.

"Wait! I've never seen this guy in my life! Come back!" Vic called after them, but they didn't look back, he turned to Gar, who was leaning against the wall, still mad.

"What do you want?" Vic asked, leaning next to him.

Gar saw Kori across the ballroom, still dancing with different guys, "_Worst...Party...Ever."_

"Ditto," Vic agreed.

And just when the ladies men had no hope, a flock of gorgeous red heads floated passed them, and a certain red head turned a group of boys away.

"Best party ever!" the two exclaimed together and ran to their targets.

* * *

"I did it just for you," Richard told Raven, as she walked around and observed her surroundings.

Raven stood on the roof of the Wayne Manor, towering over nearly every building in Gotham City. And in the middle of the roof a table for two sat. It was set with the finest China money could buy and a white Egyptian Cotton table cloth. And in the middle of the finely set table, a slender vase sat with a single White Camellia inside.

Violin music was being played by two violinist who stood a few yards away from the table. And a waiter stood by them, ready and waiting to serve the two.

But the most attractive thing about this setting to Raven, was the view. The night sky was filled with stars, which usually weren't able to be seen in the city, all the lights usually overthrew their visibility. But, they were above the lights of the city, and now the stars shined brighter than anything in the night.

And down below, nearly every inch of the city was completely visible. Gotham City has always been the most beautiful at night. All the buildings were lit up, some even in neon colors.

"I love it," Raven admitted, moving off to the side and looking over.

Her amethyst eyes glistened as she looked at the city beneath her, and Rich silently walked up next to her.

"The city seems so...peaceful from here," Raven spoke, not looking over at the teen next to her.

"It does," Rich agreed, "You know, you remind me of my mother, Raven."

"How so?" Raven inquired, looking over at Rich, who was looking out over the city.

"She loved it up here too," he replied, glancing over at her and both of them looked back to the city, "It was sort of her...escape. Whenever she was feeling down, she'd come up here. I came along sometimes, she never turned me away, and she'd tell me stories about her childhood, and things she used to do with her dad. I heard every word she said, sometimes through her tears, and I remember all of them to this day."

Raven was touched that he trusted her to share this story. If only she trusted him like he did her. "So, this was like you two's special place."

"Exactly," Richard glanced at her.

"Robin, tell me one of her stories, if you don't mind," Raven spoke, her voice soft. She took a seat, her legs dangling over the roof until she brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

Richard sat next to her, a few inches from her, bringing his knees up to his chest also,"Once, Mom and I were up here after the death of her mother. And she told me what her favorite childhood memory was. Growing up, her family didn't have much, just a small cozy little house on the outskirts of Harlem. But they were a close family that loved and cared about each other, which was good enough for her." Richard smiled, and Raven looked up at him as he continued with his story.

"And one Christmas, they all got snowed in. So their plans of visiting their grandparents in Atlanta were canceled. So her parents spent the entire day with my mom and her brothers and sisters in the snug little living room. They were wrapped up in blankets and they didn't have hot chocolate and marshmallows, so they settled with chocolate milk and oatmeal. She told me it was the best Christmas of her life."

"Your mother must be an amazing women," Raven said, looking up at him.

"She is," Rich met her gaze, "I wish you could meet her. She would love you."

"Why can't I meet her?" Raven asked.

"She lives in Jump City, and I'm not allowed to see her unless my father says it's okay. He legally has custody over me until I'm eighteen," Richard replied, looking back at the city.

"How old were you when your parents were divorced?"

"Twelve. Being so young...I didn't know what to do. It was devastating. That's how divorce and custody battles always are. But don't pity me, it made me strong." He looked back at her, waiting for her to glance at him so he could catch a glimpse of her brilliant eyes.

"What about your folks?" he asked and saw her hesitate before she turned to face him.

"What is there to say about them?" she replied, looking back and forth between both his eyes, "They're just normal parents." Lying to him made Raven immediately felt guilty. He'd told her so much about himself and his family, but he knew absolutely nothing about her. She wanted to tell him, she wanted to open up, but, she just couldn't.

"Well maybe I could meet them sometime," he offered.

"Maybe," Raven said, knowing he never would, "Well, I'm starving, let's not let this dinner go to waste."

"I agree," Richard got onto his feet and held out a hand to assist Raven.

"If you don't mind," she sassed, getting onto her feet," I'm perfectly capable of-"

Raven slipped, and she would have fallen to her death if Richard hadn't sprung into action and grabbed her waist. She was lifted in his arms, her feet dangling over the roof, and he held her tightly as he allowed her feet to once again touch the ground.

Both of them were panting slowly as Richard held her close to his body, so close that her chest was pressed firmly against his and her arms were locked around his neck.

Raven pulled herself away from him and escaped his lustful grasp and left him with his arms outstretched for her as she walked over to the table.

"What!" Richard exclaimed, letting his hands violently fall to his sides, "Hows about a thank you Richard for saving my life?"

"You'll never let yourself feel unappreciated, will you, Grayson?" Raven asked, very nervy, as she pulled out her chair and sat down."

"It's kinda hard not to with you being so unappreciative," he replied, just as assertive as she.

"Fine, Grayson," Raven rolled her eyes, throwing her napkin into her lap, "Thank you for invading my personal space and saving me."

Richard smiled, sarcastically leaving behind his audaciousness, "That's all I ask," he strolled over to the table and sat across from her.

"What would you like to eat, love?" Richard asked her, motioning for the waiter to come over.

"What's available, not my love?" Raven inquired, receiving an enthusiastic look from Rich.

"Anything you want," he replied.

"What you think I want, and don't be wrong," Raven told him, quirking her eyebrow, proposing a challenge.

"Alright, little birdy Raven," he whispered some things into the waiter's ear, and the waiter nodded and left the roof.

"So, Raven, when are we going have our soccer game?" Rich asked.

"Tonight," Raven replied, "In your dreams."

"We'll be doing more than playing soccer in my dreams tonight," Rich teased, and then purred at her.

"That's the only place we will _ever_ be doing any of those things. In your wet dreams, boy _blunder_," Raven rolled her eyes.

"What happened to boy wonder?" Richard asked.

"That was before you started getting all cocky and annoying," Raven told him, "So knock it off, or I will leave."

"Alright, alright, I'll stop. Don't leave," Rich agreed, surrendering and causing Raven to smirk and he allowed her to without receiving any lip from him.

They waited in silence (Raven enjoyed the view of the city while Rich enjoyed the epitome of a dark angel who sat across from him), and it was Richard's observing of the stunner that brought it to his attention that he was an idiot. They'd been on the rooftop for well over an hour and Raven's skin was bare! She had no jacket and her dress was short and sleeveless. A horrible date and friend he was for not noticing.

"I'm sorry, little birdy Raven," Rich hopped up from his seat and hurriedly removed his palatial jacket, leaving him in only his white collared shirt and black tie.

Raven leaned up off the back of her chair and allowed Richard to gently placed the black coat around her skin of silk, draping in on her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said, pulling it around her tighter with her hands, "I was beginning to think that you were going to let me become an ice sculpture."

"Why didn't you say anything? Now I feel like a jerk," Richard pouted, situating himself back into his seat.

"Because, little birdy Robin," Raven leaned close to him and he to her until her lips were right next to his ear, "It was a test," she whispered only audible enough for the athlete to hear.

Her breath was like a thousand needles piercing into his flesh, and he _loved_ it. He has under her spell. Everything, _everything_ about this girl lured him in. Her name, her eyes, her body, her skin, her scent, her personality, her mysterious background, her _everything_. And he _loved_ it.

"And...did I pass?" he managed to say as Raven sat back down.

"Hmm," Raven mulled it over, "Barely," she decided.

"Well maybe I need some private tutoring," Richard raised his eyebrow and smirked mischievously.

"Maybe you need to get your hormones under control," Raven rolled her eyes as the waiter from before served their food to them on covered silver platters.

The waiter quickly placed the platters and glasses on the table, and lifted the silver covers away and hurriedly left the roof.

"Why is he in such a hurry?" Raven inquired, looking down at her dish. Richard had gotten Luohan Zhai, another one of her favorites, and in her glass was steaming herbal tea, her absolute favorite.

"They're probably having a big rush inside." Richard replied, ravishing his meal.

"Food?"

"The rich aren't really big eaters at parties."

Raven cocked her head.

Richard tilted his head back and gestured with his thumb to his mouth.

"Ah," Raven figured, "They'll start dropping like flies by midnight."

"Earlier than midnight, these fat cats aren't what they used to be," Richard corrected, "So did I pass the test, little birdy Raven?"

"What are you going on about, Grayson?" Raven asked, taking a spoonful of Luohan Zhai and putting it in her mouth.

"You asked me to pick for you. Did I get it right?"

"By a lucky guess," Raven admitted, "And don't go getting a big head about it."

"How can I? You won't let me feel like I accomplish anything," Rich chuckled, "But whatever, I guess you keep me in line."

"As it should be," Raven smirked and took another bite of her food.

* * *

"Oh yeah, I am stuffed," Richard yawned, patting his stomach and tossing his napkin from his lap to the table.

Raven, like a proper lady, folded her napkin, "So am I," she agreed, pulling his coat closer to her.

Richard finally was able to control himself and not look at Raven by turning his attention to something that was almost as beautiful as she. The stars. They almost shinned brighter than the sparkle in Raven's amethyst orbs. They almost measured up to her exquisiteness.

They shinned in the night sky like a million newly polished pure diamonds. They allured him with their artistry and he lost himself in the stars, like he used to do in his childhood.

He stood on his feet and leaned casually against the table with his arms folded across his chest, feasting his eyes on the stars.

Raven stood as well, his coat draped over her shoulders, and joined him without leaning on the table, she too, admired the stars. "What's the story behind the stars, Robin?" Raven inquired, her voice soaring with the melody of the breezing wind.

"After the divorce...I would always stare out of my window and look up at the night sky...The moon seemed like the perfect place to run away to...To escape this hell hole I call home...all the pain would go away," he spoke, his eyes never once leaving the sky.

"And the stars. Never once could I see the night sky and not notice something different from the night before, some new pattern that had never been there. You see," he pointed upward and Raven followed his finger to a group of stars.

"That looks like a disheartened tiger that's been in captivity all it's life...It's been deprived of everything a real tiger is supposed to have... And It's afraid...it's afraid of what it's life might become if it's released into a world it's never known...A world of defenselessness and despair..."

Richard had always been able to see past the image and behind the mask. He truly had a gift. But there was one thing he couldn't penetrate, one thing that made him blind, and that one thing was Raven. She was _his_ mystery to solve._ His_ perplexity.

"...And there," he pointed to another point in the night sky, "That's a mural of a woman with smooth and dominant features…She's in mourning...something tragic has happened to her...Maybe she lost the love she loved the most...Or maybe she's...trapped...in a dream of uncertainty."

"Why does such a simple thing like the night sky, hold so much meaning, so much reason?" Raven inquired, her eyes still beholding the wondrous objects up above.

"And why does it take a special person to read the story behind the beauty?" Richard countered, his eyes never leaving the sky, "Some things are meant to be secrets, Raven. And sometimes, they're just better left unknown."

"Show me another, Robin," Raven told him, moving herself closer to him.

"Well, you see there," he pointed to a constellation, "That lone star, just beneath Andromeda, that's my favorite, it's named Raven."

For the first time since they stood, they tore their gaze from the sky and looked at each other. Raven cocked her head and quirked her brow. Seeing that she was confused, Richard pulled a sheet of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Raven.

She took it in both of her hands and read over it. She saw that it was a certificate, granting the star that Richard had showed her the name of Raven.

"You bought me a star?" Raven asked. She brought her hand up and placed it on his arm and looked into his stormy blue eyes.

"It was the only gift I could think of that would be almost as extravagant as you," Richard replied, his million dollar smile stole Raven away. She snaked her arms around his neck and pulled him into her embrace and Richard wrapped his arms around Raven's waist.

"That's the most thoughtful thing anybody's ever done for me," she whispered into his ear.

Raven pulled back, and looked into his eyes, smiling.

"You're welcome, little birdy Raven," he smiled back at her. They pulled apart and he took her hand of silk into his and caressed her knuckles with his thumb.

Raven just stared at him and their smiles slowly faded away.

And then, time seemed to stop, and the world became theirs. Without a care in the world, Raven allowed her eyes to flutter closed, and Richard, his dreams becoming reality, copied her notions, and slowly pulled her closer to him. Raven allowed him, she allowed herself to inch toward the teen whom she desired the most at the moment.

Closer and closer they became, so close that their open mouths were but an inch apart. Their warm breath that contrasted with the cold air to become a visible smoky substance combined together.

Passion burned, Lust flared, and Desire blazed all in the heat of this intense moment.

But, suddenly, time resumed, the fire was suffocated, and reality came flying back. And Raven realized what was happening, and she stopped herself just as her lips nearly locked with Richard's.

She took a step back away from him and Richard's eyes opened to see the fear in her eyes. He held onto her hand trying to prevent her from leaving and he pleaded with his eyes for her forgiveness.

Raven knitted her eyebrows and her eyes scanned over her body and up at Richard. What was she thinking? She was about to let Richard kiss her. No. She was about to kiss him. This is what happens when she lets her guard down.

"Raven," Rich brought her from her thoughts, "Please, I'm sorry."

Raven pulled her hand away and it slipped from Richard's grasp.

Raven closed her eyes, completely overwhelmed, "Goodnight Robin," she struggled to say and quickly turned on her heels and ran towards the door.

"Raven, I'm sorry!" Richard yelled after her, praying to God that she listened.

Raven stopped and opened the door, standing next to it, she turned and spared Rich one last glance and a few last words.

"It's fine," she told him, barely loud enough to hear over the wind. And with that, she left the roof, leaving Richard dumbfounded but also relieved. From what had just happened, he knew. He finally knew. He cared about Raven more than anything in the world, and something told him that she cared about him too.

* * *

End Chapter

Okay, so how was that? Please review and tell me what you think. Seriously, reviews are accepted and greatly appreciated. And while I'm at it, I just want to thank everyone who has read my story, or reviewed so far, or will review in the future. So thank you everybody!

Alright, so I will try to update soon. I'm back to school pretty soon (ugh) and hopefully I will have some time to write. So keep a close lookout for an update.

And I was going to wait until the next chapter to say this, but I guess I should say it now since you've had to wait. If you haven't noticed already, I'm planning on having a **Gar/Kori/Phoenix** love triangle. So while Raven and Rich are having their issues and things, so will Kori, Gar, and Phoenix.

So, keep a lookout, and don't forget to review.

1. Press the review button  
2. Write whether you thought the chapter was good, bad, or in between.  
3. Write the things I could improve on of you thought I did good.  
4. Write your thoughts about the Raven/Rich relationship so far.  
5. Write your thoughts about my newest triangle (read the authors note up above). **In your opinion, who ****should Kori be with?  
**6. Write your thoughts about all the scenes with Raven and Rich at the gala.  
7. Write your overall thoughts about the gala.  
8. Write your thoughts about how the chapter ended.  
9. Write your overall thoughts about the chapter.  
10. Sign the review.  
11. Press the submit review button and put a smile on my face.

_~GothicPrincess_

* * *

_Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends._

_~Corinthians 13:7-8_


	8. The Autumn Festival

Hey guys, hope you liked the last chapter, and here's another. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_The past is behind us, love is in front and all around us._

_~Terri Guillemets_

_Chapter Eight: **The Autumn Festival**_

* * *

Raven turned and looked at the flashing red numbers on her digital clock. Five am, it read, and Raven was lying in her bed, wide awake. Tossed and turned is what she'd done, all she had been able to do, since she'd returned home. Her mind was cluttered with thoughts and events, too many indecisive thoughts and catastrophic events. Last night, s_he_ almost kissed Rich. _Why?_ Afterward, she ran away. _Why?_

Raven heavily exhaled and let her gleaming eyes roam around her room, her room enveloped in the darkness from the lack of sunlight in the wee hours of the morning. Her piercing, screaming, thoughts echoing through her complex mind. She _wanted_ to kiss him. She did.

Discontented with her thoughts taking a meandering path, she dispiritedly sighed and rotated onto her side."I'm such an idiot. What was I thinking?" baffled and overwhelmed, she asked herself.

Very irritated, Raven groaned, _"Maybe, I feel more than just a friendship with Robin?"_ she pondered and then mentally kicked herself for thinking it.

"_No. No. No. Absolutely and most definitely **NOT**. I only like Robin as a friend. Don't I?"_ she whirled over and violently smashed her face into her pillow and let out a lengthy muffled scream.

"_This is a thing unheard of!"_ she mentally yelled at the top of her lungs, _"Raven Roth is **NEVER** unsure of how she feels about anything! Right?"_

Raven spun over once again on her back and huffed, "My life is turning into a sappy, cheesy, romance, chick-flick." She reached over to her side and hugged her pillow.

She looked down over the edge of her bed at the cot in which a red head lay, stirring in her sleep. "Are you awake?" Raven inquired, her voice piercing into the cold silence and eerie darkness of the room.

"No," Kori mumbled.

"Get up," Raven reached down and shook Kori's shoulder.

Groaning, Kori sat up on her cot. Yawning, she pushed her bangs from her face, "What?"

"I can't sleep," replied Raven, also moving stray hairs from her own face.

Kori sighed, "And why can't you sleep, Raven?"

"Because I..." Raven trailed off and mindlessly began to fiddle with the frayed edge on her pillow.

"You can trust me enough to tell me _anything_, I promise" Kori reassured her.

Raven sighed and closed her eyes as she began the story.

From the beginning of the long, detailed recap of the night, to the end, Kori's expression stayed about the same. She waited a few moments after Raven finished, tapping her lip with her finger, "Why did you run away from Richard after everything that had happened that night?" Kori asked, not accusative, but concerned.

Raven sharply exhaled and looked up at Kori, "I was confused and overwhelmed...I don't know what I was thinking...I still can't conjure up an explanation, Kori, I guess I'm just not smart enough in this subject," Raven shrugged.

"Raven, just stop using your brain and listen," Kori advised her.

"To what?" Raven asked, letting her eyes fall to her pillow once more.

"Your heart." Kori replied.

Raven hesitated but looked up at Kori anyways, her eyebrows knitted, "If only I could hear it, Kori."

Kori placed her hand on Raven's knee.

"Can you make me coffee, Kori?" Raven asked, taking the mood back to the way it should have been.

"And why would _I_ get _you_ coffee?" inquired Kori, folding her arms across her chest.

"Because _you_ pushed _me_ out of a window," Raven countered. Kori groaned and got onto her feet.

"Don't forget," warned Raven, "Two creams and one sugar."

"Whatever," Kori sauntered out of the room and down the stairs. Soundlessly asleep on the couch, was Phoenix, bare chested with a blanket thrown over him. Fighting back a blush, the little redheaded beauty tiptoed passed the enchanting young fellow and into the kitchen.

Tacitly, Kori prepared the coffee machine and afterward, put the coffee on to brew. She then wandered back into the living room and positioned herself in the recliner. She crossed her legs at the knee and ran her fingers through an inferno of perfect red hair.

She found her eyes wandering over to the handsome young man sleeping peacefully on the couch diagonal from her. Like an angel he slept.

Kori couldn't help but feel her body temperature rising and her cheeks boiling. She was absolutely and most definitely extremely attracted to Phoenix. He had the perfect look, and his personality was everything, _everything_, that her ex-boyfriend's wasn't.

From what everyone had told her about Phoenix, she didn't want to feel anything special towards him. But she couldn't stop herself. But, being a young woman, somehow she knew that everything would work out. Whether she walked away hurt or satisfied, life would go on and she would be alright.

The coffee pot's ringer sounded through the quietness of the room, and Kori hopped onto her feet. Before starting towards the kitchen she turned her head and spared the young man one last glance, but stood there completely stunned when she saw Phoenix's bright jade green eyes staring directly at her.

"EEP!" she screeched, and attempted to flee from the living room and into the kitchen. In her hurried departure, she didn't realize that her foot was underneath the living room rug, and she tripped. Kori toppled over the coffee table, hit her head on the edge, and landed flat on her back on the opposite side of the table.

"Ugh," she groaned in pain and embarrassment, and placed her hand onto her throbbing forehead.

Even though it was extremely early, Phoenix sprang up off the couch, hopped over the coffee table, and knelt at her side."Kori," he said, smiling at the girl's clumsiness, "You alright?"

"I'm fine," she replied, lying of course, "But my dignity isn't," a feign smile played about her lips, but the blush brought on by the closeness of Phoenix's bare, toned body was completely genuine.

He chuckled, "It's alright, Kori, nobody's poise at five am; No need to be ashamed. Your secret's safe with me," he held out a hand for her to take, which she gladly did. He pulled her upperbody towards him. An awkward silence commenced. He helped her onto her feet, and with awkward giggles and chuckles, Kori went into the kitchen while Phoenix stayed behind in the living room.

After retreating to the kitchen, away from the boy whom had startled her, Kori fetched Raven's favorite coffee mug from the cupboard, and after placing it on the counter, she poured the mug full with steaming hot coffee. She added the cream and sugar to the mug and stirred them in with a spoon.

She grasped the mug and turned to the door where a soundless, closemouthed, bare chested, Phoenix leaned nonchalantly against the doorframe.

"Holy!" Kori cried and ricocheted backwards on her feet, violently jerking her upperbody and resulting in the cup the teen was retaining to overturn. The blazing, blistering, contents discharged from the container and enveloped her chest and neck in a scorching, searing, blanket of discomfort.

"HOT!" the redhead shrieked and a coercive reflex caused the mug to fly from her hand and forcefully land on her foot, where it was demolished, and some of the jagged fragments pierced into her flesh.

"Ow!" she grimaced and found herself falling into Phoenix's arms instead of the hard kitchen floor.

He carried her bridal style against his pale, toned body, into the living room, where he lay her down on the couch and disappeared upstairs for a moment and reappeared with the first aid kit, a damp cloth, and clean towels.

"My chest is burning," Kori cried, fighting back the sting tears in her eyes.

Phoenix tossed the ice cold cloth to her, while he immediately began to extract the broken glass from her foot.

Kori, without the slightest bit of hesitation, mashed the towel against her scorched chest, dabbing away and ridding her body of the fiery liquid. After the burning sensation of the boiling coffee was extinguished, it was then that she realized her foot was in pure agony.

She peered down at her foot, which was in the hands of her hero, and blood, _her _blood, was leaking from her foot and onto Phoenix's hands as he pulled out the last piece of glass, sending a sharp pain from her foot to her spine. She gritted her teeth and a whimper escaped her throat while tears broke from her closed lids and strolled down her cheeks.

"It's alright, Kori," Phoenix's voice broke the silence as the rising sun peaked through the window shades.

His reassurance may not have helped any other, but it immediately healed Kori. The sound of his voice in the cold room just warmed her heart and allowed her to feel as if he would take care of her.

"So why are you up so early?" Phoenix questioned. He realized that Kori's muscles in her legs left their previous tensed state when he spoke before, so he figured that a bit of small talk would really be of assistance at this particular moment.

"Your sister wanted coffee," Kori replied, taking her mind off of the pain in her foot.

"And you're obligated to get it?" he pressed on, quirking his eyebrow as he wiped the blood from her foot.

"Yes because I pushed her out of her window," Kori replied, barely noticing her foot anymore, "Worst mistake of my life."

"You pushed Raven out of a window? Why, when, and are you insane?" Phoenix inquired, dripping with sarcasm. Now he was cleansing the punctual wounds with peroxide.

"It's a long story," Kori brushed his question off.

"Let me guess, a spiky haired soccer player, a stubborn little birdy, and her bold redheaded best friend?" Phoenix countered, quirking his eyebrow as he wrapped her foot with gauze.

Kori looked up at him, noticing how his facial expression was very similar to his little sister's, and she giggled. "Maybe," Kori replied, "But since you're asking so many questions, can I ask you something?"

"Ask away." Phoenix answered, now finished with Kori's injured foot, and folded his arms across his chest.

Kori brought her knees up to her chest, minding her injuries, and wiped away her tears, "Where are your parents?" inquired Kori, unaware that Phoenix's heart dropped and shattered into millions of tiny fragments.

The smile of Phoenix dropped from his face and his jade eyes fell to floor. He turned his body away from her, as if she wasn't important anymore.

Kori, taking note to his uncomfortableness, continued and explained herself, "They're not anywhere around here, and nobody's even said anything about them since I've been here. And I knew something was up when _Eagle_ was the one who allowed me to stay here and not a parent."

Knowing that Kori was a bright and observant girl, Phoenix was sure she'd catch on sooner or later. And he was hoping she would choose one of his siblings to ask. But Kori chose him, and there was no going back, "You mean, Raven hasn't said anything to you?"

Kori shook her head, "Nobody has. And since Phoebe's so young, I just thought that you seemed to be the least "disturbed" of everyone, so I asked you."

"I'm just as "_disturbed_" as Eagle and Raven. I just have a different way of showing it," Phoenix replied, his words dripping with venom as he spat them.

"By lashing out at anybody who cares?" Kori countered, very nervy.

"No, by pretending it never happened and avoiding anything that might remind me," Phoenix responded just as assertive as she.

"Well, I'm sorry for thinking you might be different than that," Kori knitted her eyebrows and gave him a look that said more than enough. She struggled, but got onto her feet, and hobbled passed him, but a soft hand enveloped her's and stopped her in her tracks.

"My mom died a few years ago from cancer, Leukemia, cancer of the blood cells," he stated, and the look on Kori's face told him that her fragile heart broke into a million pieces, "And being eighteen at the time, Eagle took over since our dad was and still is a Navy SEAL and wouldn't be around often enough to take care of us."

Kori waited a moment, and then sat next to him on the sofa, her hand still in his. "I'm sorry, Phoenix, I...I didn't know...I shouldn't have..." she trailed off.

"It's fine, Kori, don't be sorry, everything I've been through made me the man I am today," Phoenix replied.

Kori smiled at him, and Phoenix returned a smile (his award winning smile) and pulled Kori into his embrace. When he released her, awkwardness filled the room.

"So, I will see you later at the festival, right?" Phoenix asked, breaking the awkwardness.

"What festival?" Kori inquired.

"The Autumn festival," Phoenix replied, "Our block has one every year at our town park. It's sort of a tradition that we go. You coming along?" 

"Sure," Kori smiled, and hobbled upstairs.

* * *

"We're home!" Vic and Gar announced upon entering the Roth household.

Hearing their voices, Phoebe came sprinting down the stairs "Vic! Gar! What did you guys get me? Tell me! Tell me! Tell me!" she hopped up and down uncontrollably.

"There you go, PB," Vic handed her a shopping bag and she eagerly dug the contents out and found a tiger suit of orange and black fur.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she gave them a 100-watt smile before she bounced upstairs to put on her costume.

"Hey guys," Kori waltzed down the stairs with Raven behind her.

"Hey, Kori," Vic greeted her while taking a seat on the sofa.

"Hello, my perfection," Gar breathed, positioning himself next to Vic.

Raven took a seat in the recliner while Kori lay down on the loveseat.

"Sup, little Rae," Vic greeted her.

"Hello, Victor," Raven said blankly.

"Hey, Ravester," Gar joked, "Are you feeling okay? You're even duller than usual."

"You know, I just love hearing that," Raven rolled her eyes, "There's nothing wrong, I'm fine, I just didn't get any sleep last night. Too much excitement at the gala."

"Have too much fun with Rich?" Vic teased, "Well, no worries, you'll see him soon because Gar invited him here to paint PB's face like a tiger. You know, to tie the costume together.."

"Wait, what?" Raven was completely awake now.

"Phoenix gave me the okay," Gar reassured her, "What's the problem? I thought you two were friends."

"You don't understand!" Raven shouted, a little louder.

"What's not to understand?" Vic asked.

"Nothing," Raven stalked out of the room.

Kori ran after her and peered down the upstairs hallway and saw the mysterious teen standing there, Raven's back to Kori so she couldn't see her expression. She had no idea what was running through Raven's head right now.

"Raven, what's wrong? Why'd you run off like that?" Kori asked, slowly approaching her, but noticing the deep, anger filled breaths coming from her friend, and she dared not to come any closer than she already was.

Hearing the concern in Kori's voice, for the first time in her life, Raven allowed herself to momentarily let down her defensive wall, and allow her thoughts to flow freely from the inside. "I know you've noticed, Kori. Look around." Raven's voice pierced into the cold, emptiness of the hallway, bouncing from the walls. "What's missing?"

Kori waited a moment, reasoning her thoughts before she spoke them. "Parents," she replied.

"I don't have any, Kori, not anymore." Raven draped her arms around her figure, hugging herself, comforting her own self.

"Everyone has parents, Raven, even you," Kori stated.

"In your eyes I do," Raven hissed and shot around, facing the older girl, "Because you don't know what it's like."

"I do, Raven," Kori reassured her.

"No. No, you don't. You don't know _anything_ because nothing _bad_ has ever happened to you, because you live your stupid fantasy life. And you'll never know what it's like to be me, to live through what I've lived through," Raven scowled at Kori, "You know _nothing_."

Kori ignored the sting of tears forming in her eyes and she returned Raven's venomous words,"Oh really? I wish this fantasy life you're talking about existed when I sat next to my husband and watched him die."

"You mean that ignorant bastard who got your best friend pregnant?" Raven retaliated.

As the words escaped Raven's mouth, tears escaped Kori's eyes but she was infuriated with Raven and continued the altercation with her. "No, a guy way before him. A guy I gave my heart to knowing he would leave soon. He had brain cancer when I met him, Raven," she grimaced, "And he died a few weeks after our wedding. Why do you think I came here, Raven?"

Silence filled the small hallway, waiting for the scowling Raven to answer.

Kori lowered her voice to a whisper, "I came to forget."

Once more, silence filled the hallway, as tears streamed down Kori's face, and Raven's mind was sorting out her thoughts while the glare upon her face faded away. She was still angry with Kori, or angry at the world. She didn't know, she was just so angry. Why? But she realized it was obvious that she didn't know who to be angry with, but Kori wasn't the one who deserved what Raven was dishing out.

"I'm sorry," Raven mumbled, "I didn't know."

"Because you _assume_ things _too_ much," Kori, tears still leaking from her eyes, turned on her heels and began to slowly leave the hallway.

"Wait," Raven reached out and grabbed Kori's arm, and almost instantly, she dropped it, like it burned.

Kori turned to face Raven, "What?" Kori asked, thinking to herself that she didn't want to hear anything else Raven had to say to her.

Raven paused again, "I'm sorry, Kori. It's just, to hear you say that you know what it's like, just set me off."

"Well _every_thing isn't what it seems, Raven," Kori shook her head, "You of all people should know that." She turned once more to leave, but Raven pulled her back, into her embrace.

"I'm sorry, Kori," Raven apologized, "I mean it."

After a moment of two, they pulled apart, and Kori studied Raven's face. Seeing that there was not even a glisten in her eyes of amethyst. "You're not crying. Not a single tear," she pointed out, a questioning look on her face.

"I don't cry," Raven simply said, "Not for years, not anymore."

Kori raised a brow, bewildered but also interested at the same time, "I don't think I want to know," she simply stated as the doorbell sounded through the silence of the house. "That's Richard," Kori told her, "Let's go," she rubbed the tears from her face, and led the way downstairs.

Upon entering the living room, Raven and Kori saw that Vic and Gar had answered the door already and the two of them and Richard were standing together in the middle of the living room, Vic was facing the staircase while Rich and Gar's backs were to it.

"You girls work everything out?" Vic asked, being aware of their presence while his two friends weren't.

"Yes," Kori smiled, "Hey, Rich."

Rich turned towards the staircase, hearing his name, and saw Raven and Kori, making their way down to the living room. He had pause, even in sweats Raven was gorgeous. He subtly shook his head, leaving behind his thoughts, "Hey, Kori," he said "Hey, Raven."

"Hello," Raven simply greeted him, reaching the bottom of the staircase and following Kori into the room with the boys.

"Hold up, you're actually speaking to me?" Rich asked, walking over to Raven while Kori joined Vic and Gar in the living room.

"And why wouldn't I be, exactly, birdboy?" Raven inquired, dripping with sarcasm.

"Cause I'm a lowlife jerk and if you and I were ever stranded on an island, I would trade myself over to the cannibalistic natives in return for coconuts for you," Richard replied.

"Sounds fair," Raven responded innocently.

Richard smiled, "Do you mind if I join you guys at the festival today."

"If you promise not to annoy me, then no, I don't mind," Raven offered.

Richard secretly crossed her fingers behind his back, "You have my word. Now where's this little sister I've heard so much about?"

"Upstairs," Raven replied, "Gar, you mind getting Phoebe for me?"

"Of course not," Gar replied, "FEEBSTER!"

"I could have done that myself, Garfield," Raven rolled her eyes.

"Why didn't you, Rayfield?" Gar rolled his eyes too and Phoebe came bouncing down the stairs, now dressed like an orange tiger with black stripes.

"Phoebe, this is Richard, he's going to paint your face and make you look like a real tiger," Raven told her, pulling her tiny little sister up into her arms.

"Raven, she's...adorable, and not, odd and distraught, like I expected," Rich smiled, reaching out and taking Phoebe into his own arms, and also picking up his art case.

Vic nudged Gar and mumbled, "Just wait til he gets a load of Eagle."

"Shut up, Vic," Raven told him, completely able to hear the comment he'd made to Gar. She led Rich into the Kitchen, and while having his own private little conversation with Phoebe, Rich sat her down in the kitchen chair and began to paint her face like a tiger's.

"So what exactly happens at this festival?" Kori inquired.

"Let's see," Vic replied, "Loads of things to do with the family. A nice well-mannered experience."

"And let's not forget the Autumn Queen and King," Gar chimed in, "I'm a fierce competitor this year, looks like Mister Pretty Boy here will have to give up his throne, there's a new fairest of them all in town," he nudged Vic.

"Face it, Gar, I win every year," Vic boasted, "You don't have a chance, ugliest of them all."

"Things change, Princess," Gar reminded him.

"Not this thing, Rookie."

"Speaking of things staying the same," Rich said, his eyes never leaving the paintbrush in his hand as he stroked it over Phoebe's cheeks, "I'm having my annual Halloween party, also been nicknamed Hell's Haunted HallowScream," he smirked, "You guys in?"

"Party!" Vic and Gar screamed together and danced all about.

"Of course I'll be there," Kori agreed, "What about you, Raven?"

"Sounds sinister and uncanny...Whatever," in Raven's language, she agreed.

"Yay! Little Rae is finally going to actually have fun at a party on her birthday!" Vic cheered.

"Your birthday's on Halloween?" Rich inquired.

"Yes," Raven replied.

"Big shocker," Gar chimed in, "The ice princess was born on the creepiest day of the year."

Raven plainly rolled her eyes at Gar's simple minded insult.

Rich stood up from kneeling in front of Phoebe in the chair and stepped back, "There you go, Phoebe, a tiger."

Simultaneously, Raven, Vic, Gar, and Kori turned and looked at Phoebe's now completely painted face. The paint was smooth and thin, and no brush stroke marks were even visible. A flawless job Rich had done indeed.

"Sweet skills, there, bro," Vic and Gar commented, simultaneously.

"It looks amazing, Rich," Kori contemplated.

"Wow," Raven complimented, "And it only took you about five minutes. You've got some real talent, Grayson."

"Thanks," Rich smiled.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Phoebe shouted, jumping up and down uncontrollably at Rich's feet.

"You're welcome, sweetheart," Rich smiled at the overexcited little girl as she ran upstairs.

"Back to the party," Rich said once Phoebe was out of sight, "I change it up every year, but I'm kinda stumped on what to do differently this year."

"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!" Gar jumped up and down, "Pick me! Pick me! Pick me!"

"Yes, Gar?" Rich appointed him, giving him a very strange look.

"We, (as in, me, Vic, Kori, Raven, and you), should each design our own freaky haunted room inside your GIGANTANORMOUS haunted house!" Gar spat, never breathing between lines.

"That's a great idea," Rich agreed, "Is everybody in?"

A series of "mmhm's", head nods, and "duh's" were said.

"Halloween is the best holiday of the year, since I'm so into like werewolves, zombies, witches and ghosts, it's such a blast!" Kori exclaimed, extremely excited, "My grandma used to tell me all kinds of spooky stories when I was smaller."

"Take those stories and turn them into a reality," Raven advised her.

Before any more words could be voiced, Phoenix came jogging down the stairs with Eagle sauntering behind him, Phoebe in his arms.

"Hey, Rich," Phoenix greeted him, going into the kitchen with Kori and Gar, whom where sharing a sundae, and Vic, whom was eating an apple.

"Sup, Phoenix," Richard greeted him back, "How's the room coming, Eagle."

"It's coming along fine, Rich," Eagle replied, joining his brother and Vic, Gar, and Kori in the kitchen.

Raven, whom was on the other side of the kitchen counters at the kitchen table with Rich, exchanged confused glances with Kori.

Kori waved her hands around in the air telling everyone to stop, "Wait, wait, wait. Stop. Hold up. Hang on. Rewind. Back up. Whoa." she pointed from Eagle, to Phoenix, to Rich, "You three know each other."

"Vic and Gar introduced us because Rich needed to know some things about Raven that only we would know," Phoenix replied.

"Oh, so these are your "sources"?" Raven asked Rich, using air quotes.

Rich smirked and shrugged his shoulders , "Hey, Raven, where are your parents? I was looking forward to meeting them?" he asked.

The room feel dead silent, and everyone, but Raven, in the kitchen exchanged subtle looks.

"They're out right now," Raven lied, "They had some things to do."

Rich nodded disappointed, "I guess I'll just have to catch them another time them," he reasoned, and Raven agreed with a nod, telling herself on the inside that he never would.

She hated lying to him. Rich had been nothing but nice to her ever since their friendship had started a few weeks ago. But she just couldn't get herself to open up to him, and let him inside her life. She just couldn't.

"Well," Phoenix's voice broke the awkwardness of the room, "Let's go then."

"Do I need to take my car?" Kori asked.

"No, you can ride up front in my car with me," Phoenix replied, giving her smile.

"Well, Eagle's not going until later, so...how am I supposed to get there?" Raven inquired, noting that Kori had just been given her usual seat.

"My car is available," Richard offered, and before Raven could even say anything, Kori, Phoenix, Vic, Gar, and Phoebe had already fled from the house and driven off.

"Well, I guess I have no choice then. No funny business, Grayson." Raven sauntered out the door, waving an accusative finger at Rich, who was behind her.

They entered his palatial car and just as quickly as Raven's family, they drove off, following the GMC Denali, belonging to Phoenix, that led in front of them.

Raven just stared out of the window, silently having an inner conflict with herself. One side was saying that she should stop trying to hide the biggest part of her life from Richard and that he was a true friend and a great guy. But then, on the other side, it was saying that he was the same as every other phoney, fake, lying, backstabbing "friend" as everybody else whom she had had previous affairs with. It said that if she just stayed away, stayed to herself, that there was no way she would get hurt. And Raven, poor mislead Raven, she didn't know which side to believe.

"A penny for your thoughts, Raven?" Rich offered, bringing Raven from her thoughts.

"No," Raven replied.

"Sell them for a dollar?" Rich pressed on.

"I just, was thinking about something," Raven stated, half truthfully.

"Thinking...about what?" Rich inquired, glancing from the road to her.

"About, uh...who's going to win this year," Raven replied, making up a lie on the spot.

"Win?"

"The title as the King and Queen of Autumn. Vic usually wins every year because of his "accomplishments" as an athlete and his little secret that he keeps Gar. Every Sunday he gets up at five am and works a twelve hour shift at the battered women's shelter."

"Really?"

"Yes, deep down, Vic just a bighearted mush ball."

"Aren't we all?" Richard countered, chuckling, "I have a little hobby myself. I ref youth soccer games ever Thursday evening during soccer season. Which reminds me, when are we going to have our friendly match?"

"When the cannibalistic natives use your decapitated head as a ball," Raven replied, dripping with sarcasm and now smirking.

"You mean after they refuse my offering, take you instead, and hang you on a tree by your tongue," Rich countered.

Raven glared at him, "Touche."

Richard dropped the smirk and smiled, loosening his one hand grip on the steering wheel. And Raven looked back out the window, propping her elbow up and hiding the small smile that danced on her lips.

Upon entering the town's park, they found a parking spot, and it was tolerably crowded. The park had been embellished with giant pumpkins, hay bails, scarecrows, etc, like every year.

Richard disembarked from the vehicle and opened Raven's door for her, and they strode over to where her siblings and friends were huddled together in a group, near a couple of hay bails and a water wheel display.

Phoenix distributed a couple hundred bucks evenly among all of them, "Come on Feebs," Phoenix knelt down and accorded her to climb onto his back, "Let's go see what our neighborhood friends and their family have been up to, and then we can hit up the rides, play some games, and get a little something to eat, alright?"

"Sounds like the bestest time ever, Phoenix!" Phoebe exclaimed in exhilaration.

"You mind if I join, Phoenix?" Kori inquired.

"Not at all, Kor, c'mon," Phoenix replied and he, Kori, and Phoebe gallivanted off to tour, delve into, and get a kick out of the festival conjointly.

"Yo, Ravester, Vic and I are going to be running our own booth this year, please feel very free to stop by, I'll be sure to give you a nice discount. More for less," Gar informed her, he and Vic snickering after making the comment.

"And what, exactly, might that booth be, Logan?" Raven demanded, crossing her arms over her chest, quirking a daring brow, and taking a step nearer to him.

"The kissing booth, Roth," Gar stated.

Raven gasped, very offended but even more provoked. "You dirty-mouthed, skirt-chasing, man-whorish, X-rated movie watching little perv," Raven spat glowering at the juvenile teen.

"You know me so well," Gar wiped a phony teardrop from his eye, but before he could get another chuckle in, a powerful hand connected with his cheek, a hand belonging to none other than Raven.

"That's not how you treat a young woman, Gar," Raven reminded him, "Now you and Vic run along _before_ I get angry."

Vic and Gar, terrified of what might happen when Raven was furious, immediately and hurriedly went to their booth.

"And then there were two," Rich remarked, smirking, "Might as well make the best of it. What would you like to do first, little birdy Raven?"

"I dunno," Raven replied, "Quite frankly, I just just follow Phoenix around like a miniature dog every year. But it looks like Kori's taken up that position so..."

"Now you have to do your own thing, with me being your friend that you hang with, of course," Rich pointed out.

For the first time, Raven agreed with him. "Let's take a hayride, shall we?" Raven offered, well-disposed, interlacing her arm with his.

"We shall," Rich agreed and they strolled over to the current place the horse drawn carriage crammed with hay was parked for the time being.

They climbed into the carriage, positioned themselves in the hay, and Rich paid the driver. And afterward, the horses began trotting and, in counteraction, the carriage started to move in an almost sickening, bumpy path.

"Is this your first hayride, Raven?" Rich inquired, playfully tossing a few strands of hay at her.

"When I was smaller, my dad used to take me on hayrides a lot, when he had the time," Raven replied. She fought back the urge to smack her head. She was now walking on very thin ice at this point on account of her stupidity.

"Workaholic dad?" Richard asked.

"You could say that," Raven awkwardly agreed.

"Same here." Taking note to Raven's uneasiness of the conversation, Rich made up his mind to be a little naughty. He gathered up an entire handful of hay and threw it carelessly and directly in Raven's face.

"Grayson," Raven glared at Rich and another fistful of hay humorously connected with her face.

Raven repeated, "Grayson," and, again, she acquired another handful in the face from a high-handed Richard.

"Don't call me Grayson," he directed her, taking up another cache of hay and primed to chuck it at Raven.

"Not going to happen, Grayson," Raven iterated once more and before Richard could cast the hay from his hand at her face, she lunged at him. They wrestled around until Raven ended up on top with her elbow in his chest and her knees and legs pinning him down. And for reasons unknown, Richard, with a sharp exhale, instantly threw in the towel, and allotted Raven to pry the hay from his hand.

"I win, Grayson," Raven boasted, allowing the victory hay to simply fall from her hand and pelt Rich's face.

"I suggest you get your knee away from my balls or we're all going to be sorry," Richard croaked, his face growing red as the blood rose to his head.

Raven gasped and very embarrassed, she immediately scrambled from on top of him, "Oh, sorry," she apologized, completely mortified.

Richard seated himself upright and eased over to the side of the carriage, sustaining his abdomen with both hands and biting back his solid urge to vomit.

Raven, tremendously displeased with her actions that resulted with Richard being in pain, placed a comforting hand of silk onto his shoulder. "I'm such an infliction," she maundered.

Richard heard Raven's shameful muttering, "No, you just don't know how to straddle a man...yet."

Raven nudged his shoulder and pulled her hand away, rolling her eyes, "Perv."

"I'm not the one who was-"

"Don't finish that sentence," Raven interrupted him as the carriage came to slow gentle stop.

Rich chuckled, "You up for a few carnival games?"

"You mean, a chance to kick your soccer boy butt?"

"You wanna make it interesting?" he offered, hopping off the side of the carriage.

"You mean, a bet?" Raven asked, jumping off after him.

"Call it whatever you want," Rich shrugged, "Two out of three, and w_hen_ I win, you have to come to one of my soccer games, and cheer for me wearing a banana suit and clucking like a chicken, and complaining about the voices."

"Well, _if_ you win, I will. But if I win, you have to be my slave for the rest of the day." Raven offered.

"Deal," they shook hands, "Lets hit the balloon and dart game first."

"I've never played that before," Raven stated.

"Don't worry, I'll go easy on you."

Three minutes later

"Beginner's luck," Richard claimed.

"I win," Raven playfully stuck her tongue out at Rich and the man behind the counter at the booth handed her a giant, stuffed, Panda bear, that almost weighed as much as she did, "Thanks."

"Let's go to the ring a bell next," Richard told her and before she could protest, he'd already pulled her away from the balloon and dart's booth.

"Let me show you how it's done," Richard bragged, swaying the mallet in his hand. He rared back, and took a big, hearty swing, and the indicator went all the way to the very top, ringing the bell.

"Bring it, Roth," Richard dared her, taking his giant monkey from the guy working the booth.

"Oh, it's on, Grayson," Raven shoved her panda bear into his chest.

She picked up the mallet, that was a lot heavier than she thought, and she pounded the board as hard as she could, but the indicator only went a little less than halfway up.

"Wow, you made it all the way to 400, nice," Richard joked, dripping with sarcasm.

"Whatever," Raven pouted snatching back her panda, "Let's go to the Dime Pitch game."

"But that game is impossible," Richard claimed, jogging to catch up to her.

"And so was I, remember?" Raven smirked, and unexpectedly broke out into a run.

Shocked, Richard waited a second before sprinting after her.

Raven looked over her shoulder at him, and she couldn't help but laugh, he looked ridiculous running with a giant monkey in his arms. But even with the hindrance, he was gaining on her, fast, so she came up with a devious little plan to get him off her trail.

All of sudden, Raven disappeared from Richard's view, and he stopped, "Okay, if I was Raven, where would I be?" he asked himself, and a siren immediately blared in his head.

He jogged over to the restocking trailer, and sneaked inside. Rich didn't see Raven anywhere inside the room filled with creepy mirrors and freaky wax figures, so he decided to put on a zombie mask that was among the clutter, and hid behind a shelf.

The door to the trailer opened, and he peaked around the corner to see Raven. She silently crouched behind one of the wax figures, waiting.

Tacitly, Rich crept up behind her, and grabbed her around the waist.

Raven let out a shrill scream, and looked over her shoulder to see that it was Rich in a stupid mask.

"You ass," Raven pouted, and ripped the mask from his face and punched his arm.

"You're just mad because I beat you to it," Rich pointed out, rubbing his arm.

"How did you know I was coming in here?" Raven inquired.

"Ssshhh," Richard held his finger up to her mouth and his eyes wandered towards the door, "Someone's coming."

"We're not supposed to be in here," Raven said, worried.

"Thank you captain obvious," Richard rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand, "Come on," he pulled her in front of him and allowed her to crouch behind the shelf first, and then he next to her.

Not a second later, a man came into the trailer, a man dressed in a clown suit with all the bells and whistles.

"Damn, lousy kids," the clown cursed and snatched up another water squirting flower to replace his one that was ripped to shreds.

Richard looked at Raven and saw her trying to hold her breath and keep from sneezing, and he stuck his finger underneath her nose and prevented her from sneezing. All was fine for a couple of seconds, until Richard could stop himself from sneezing.

The clown sharply turned on his heels towards the source of the sound, "Who's there?" he began to approach the shelf.

Raven ripped a button from Richard's over shirt, and tossed it to the other side of the room, turning the clown's attention away from them, buying them time to flee behind a mirror unseen.

The clown shook his head, "Damn kids got me on edge."

They heard the door open and close, and each of them let out a breath they'd been holding.

"That was close," Richard said, looking over at Raven.

"Too close," Raven added.

They exited from behind the mirror, and stood to see the clown still in the room.

"Raven, run!" Richard instructed and they each took off in the opposite direction towards the door, Rich stopping and grabbing their stuffed animals.

"You damn hooligans!" the clown shouted and stretched his arms and legs out across the door, guarding it.

Raven sped up and his outstretched legs were parted far enough apart, and she she baseball slid, with one leg father than the first, through his legs.

The clown grunted and bent over and looked through the space Raven had just escaped through.

Rich then acted out of instinct, and jump smooth over the man's back and escape from the trailer, where Raven was holding the door, waiting. As soon as Rich had broke loose to safety, Raven held onto the door and swung herself up, kicking the clown in the backside, and he toppled over inside the trailer.

Laughing, Raven slammed the door and took Richard's hand, and they ran together.

"That was awesome," Rich cheered, he and Raven still running.

"Exciting," Raven put in, flaunting the rarest smile in the world, making Rich feel significant for sharing it with him.

"You up for a fried candy bar?" Rich asked.

"Sounds fattening and life shortening," Raven replied, "Race you there," she then released his hand and pulled ahead.

She sprinted to the stand, where Rich caught her by the waist and they smiled and laughed.

"Raven," the lady from the stand window recognized her, "My, my, look at you."

Hearing her name, Raven looked up at the woman in the window. She was heavy set lady, in her late thirties, with peachy aging skin.

"Mrs. Abernathy?" Raven asked.

"Aw, you remember me?" Mrs. Abernathy inquired.

"Yes, you used to baby sit my brothers and me when we were smaller," Raven replied.

"That's me, last time I saw you, you were an itsy-bitsy little thing. And who's this handsome young man?"

"Richard Grayson," he replied, shaking Mrs. Abernathy's hand, "Nice to meet you."

"Wow, Raven, you surely know how to pick them," Mrs. Abernathy complimented, giving her an anything but subtle wink.

"Oh, no no, he's just a friend," Raven corrected, "My annoying friend."

"That's what I used to say about Mr. Abernathy, and now, he's my big Sweetshop Juicy Fruit," she laughed.

"I don't know about all that," Raven smiled sarcastically, and snatched her panda away from Rich, and elbowed him in the gut for snickering.

"Well, how are your brothers?" Mrs. Abernathy asked.

"They're fine," Raven answered, "Still strange, but fine."

"Well that's great. And I'm sorry about your mother. He heard what happened to her a few years back, it's a shame how things happen."

Raven didn't have to look over at Rich to see the questioning look on his face, she had no doubt that it was there. Her stomach jumped, and her heart sank. Her number one secret's existence had been exposed, Rich was going to know what she'd been keeping from him.

"Thanks for your thoughts, Mrs. Abernathy, it was nice seeing you again, but I have to go," Raven said, not looking at her or Rich before leaving the stand and breaking out into a sprint, and Richard running after her.

"Take care of yourself, Raven," Mrs. Abernathy called after them.

"Raven, stop!" Rich yelled, but Raven didn't listen, she quickened her pace, not looking back.

Rich sped up as well and Raven ran through a crowd of people, where she was lost from his vision. He pushed his way though the people, and Raven was no where to be seen, she'd disappeared.

"If I was Raven, where would I be?" Rich asked himself, immediately answering his question, and sprinting off in the direction of where Raven would be.

Richard wordlessly drew nearer to her figure atop the hay bales. Raven's back and stomach moved rhythmically to her quick, deep breaths. She was unaware of teen approaching behind her.

Rich stopped a short distance from her, just watching as she held the panda bear close to her, and stroked it's fur, gaining some sort of comfort from it. And he wondered why Raven was so elusive, so obscure.

"Raven," he called her softly.

Startled, Raven sharply turned her head and caught sight of him, before turning her face away once more. "I don't want to talk, Robin."

He walked up beside her, "Then listen," he replied, taking a seat next to her, and she scooted away, refusing to look at him.

"There's more to my story," Richard told her in hopes that she would at least glance at him, but she didn't.

"There's a reason my father has custody of me," he explained, looking away from Raven's back and down to his hands, fiddling with the hay.

"Right after the divorce, custody wasn't really a big issue. I went with my mom to Jump City and Riley stayed with Dad. Even though I didn't want to admit it, being separated from Riley was pretty hard. And that was when I realized you never really know what you have until it's gone."

Richard didn't notice the attention and acknowledgment Raven was giving him. He was staring at the ground now, his eyebrows knitted, like he was reliving the experience.

"And mom didn't have a job, so we moved in with Grandma," he continued, "And I'd never been underprivileged before, so it wasn't easy for me, at all. But I kept my mouth shut, and I did what I was told.

"But then, the script was flipped, and it was a highway to hell. My mom, she couldn't find a job because of her horrible background, and Grandma kicked her out. She offered to let me stay, but I refused to leave my mother alone.

"And we then we went to live with my mom's ex, her angry, deranged, ex. He treated my mom and I like shit, for no good reason. And one day, I lost it, and I stood up to him, and was rushed to the hospital afterward. My mom sent me back to Gotham with two broken ribs, and a torn ACL. The hardest thing about that was being the benchwarmer of the soccer season, grade six.

"And, my dad was outraged, and he took mom and her ex to court, where he was granted full legal custody of my brother and I, and that insane bastard was sentenced to two years in prison for child abuse."

He waited a moment before looking over at Raven who was staring at him with the most incredible look in her eyes that he'd ever had the pleasure of seeing.

"I'm sorry, Robin, I lied to you," she apologized, so contrite that it hurt to look at him.

"You don't have to tell me about your mom if you don't want to," Richard told her, taking full advantage of their eye contact, "It doesn't matter to a true friend...because a _true_ friend will _still_ be your friend no matter what."

Raven paused, taking in his words and really considering them, "I can't, Robin, you deserve to know," she turned away from him, clutching the bear and staring at the ground.

"My mother...is dead. She died four years ago from leukemia. It's still completely unrealistic.

"It was cold, the day she died, and raining...I could feel that something was wrong the second I woke up that morning. So I went into her room, an...and, she wasn't moving. So I touched her arm, and it was cold an...and hard; I turned her, and her face was...faded, almost.

"I knew she was dead; and I knew it was coming...just not so soon. But, anyway, after that, I didn't know what to do; so I just...I ran. I don't really remember why; or where I was going. But I ran until I absolutely couldn't breath. I dropped to my knees, and I cried. I cried all I could... Those type of wounds never really heal.

"My father, isn't around. He's a Navy SEAL and the days that hell freezes over are the days I get to see him. It's so rare. Of course I miss him. But every time the phone rings, I'm afraid that it's the call that will change my life. It's funny how much damage a simple twenty-one gun goodbye can do to a person's heart. But, like you said, the things that happened to me, made me strong."

"...Do you hate your father for opting to not be apart of your life?" Rich asked.

"...No," Raven gave him the view of her eyes again, "He's just doing what he has to do. Like everybody else."

"Yo dudes!" Gar shouted, he and Vic approaching the hay bale upon which Raven and Rich sat, "They're about to crown this years king and queen. Get your asses up and c'mon."

Laughing, Vic pulled Raven and Rich from atop the hay bales and took them to the center of the park, where the crowning ceremony would take place.

They met up with Phoenix, Kori, Phoebe, and Eagle.

"You having a nice time, Raven?" Phoenix asked, pulling Phoebe onto his back.

"The best," Raven replied, blankly.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up," Gar chanted, "They're about to announce it!"

Raven rolled her eyes.

"And now," the female announcer voiced from the stage, "I would like to announce this year's King and Queen of Autumn..."

She took her sweet time opening the envelope, making Gar nearly jump out of his skin.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the King of Autumn, Phoenix Roth, and the Queen of Autumn, Kori Anders!"

"_**WHAT**_?" Gar shouted, outraged, but unheard above the boisterous applauding audience

"You lost," Raven sung, smiling and clapping for her brother and her friend.

"Get up here you two!" the announcer yelled at them.

Eagle took Phoebe from Phoenix's back into his own arms, and patted his brother's shoulder, "Well done, bro."

"Thanks Eagle," Phoenix managed to say before Kori grabbed him by the hand and jubilantly pulled him onto the stage. Phoenix, off balance at first, but soon gained his stability.

Smiling ear to ear, Kori had the tiara placed on the crown of her head. Her tiara was gold based, and had small, autumn colored gems shaped into tiny leaves, that were enveloping the base, overlapping each other, but in array. And a gold crown with larger leave shaped gems imbedded in it was placed on Phoenix's head.

The lady announcer then opened a separate envelope and began to voice the reasons for the winners. "Kori Anders is brand new to Gotham City, but that didn't stop her from being involved. She has volunteered at the food bank since she came here. Oh yes, she puts that long red hair under a hairnet and serves the homeless. And not only that, but this little "super teen" is also a tutor, she reads to special needs kids, and she is also a volunteer at the senior center."

A loud "aw" passed over the crowd.

"And Phoenix Roth," she continued, "Is definitely not new to Gotham, but he has recently found a love for animals. This handsome little sweetheart heads down to the animal shelter whenever he is needed and helps take care of those precious little animals. And he also helps train the kids in the special Olympics, and teaches adults, who never got the chance to learn, how to read."

A massive contented sigh from all the women (minus Raven) flew over the crowd.

"I don't have to be given anything for doing any of that stuff," Phoenix explained, putting up a hand to remove the crown, but the hand of the announcer grabbed it.

"He's so sweet, isn't he sweet," she laughed, putting her arm around Phoenix, getting a little too touchy for his liking.

"Sweetums, you deserve it," she refused to let him decline the offer, tightening her grip and receiving a questioning look from Phoenix and a giggle from Kori.

"Alright everybody, time to see what this year's challenge is," the announcer continued, "Bring out the draw basket."

A random teenage girl came onto the stage and held out a basket filled with strips of paper to Phoenix.

He took a slip right off the top, but before he could read it, the announcer snatched it from his hands.

"Marriage proposal! The King of Autumn and the Queen must preform a believable wedding proposal skit," she explained, moving off the stage, "Get to it."

Phoenix cleared his throat and got down on one knee at Kori's feet and took her hand in his.

"_Your beauty, is my day and my night_

_Your words, the light, in my soul, they ignite _

_Your hair, in my embrace, is the fire_

_Your ideas, I need not inquire_

_Your laugh, is the music in my heart_

_Your eyes, are an exquisite work of art_

_Your story, is my everything_

_You are my queen_

_That I forever will love_

_Because you're what I've always dreamed of_

_You are my harvest moon_

_My morning, night, and noon_

_And I promise, with this ring_

_To not only bring_

_You happiness and sincerity_

_But a long and bountiful eternity_

_Forever I will love you_

_Let me prove that my love is true_

_Will you marry me?_

_For always, ever, and eternity?"_

Every girl in the crowd found themselves sighing and feeling a little light headed. Phoenix had stolen not only the heart of his queen with his words, but the hearts of every girl present. While Gar stood with his arms folded, and his signature "pout face" plastered on.

Kori smiled, tears forming in her eyes, before she began to speak her response

"_My beauty is your night_

_But my day, is the love I receive from before dawn to well after twilight _

_The light in your soul, my words it ignites _

_You are the writer_

_Your embrace, is my fire_

_And my ideas, you inspire_

_My laugh, needs your heart to be music_

_Your eyes are the reason mine are exquisite_

_And your story, is my everything_

_You are my king_

_That I will love always_

_Until the very end of my days_

_You are my rising sun_

_My morning, noon, and night, until the very day is done_

_And my promise, is forever yours_

_That it is you I will always adore_

_Always and forever_

_No matter whatever_

_I will love you_

_Because I know your love is true_

_You are me and I am you_

_We are one_

_Until are lives are done_

_It is you I will marry_

_For always, ever, and eternity"_

The audience applauded wildly, and Phoenix stood up on two feet again. Both of them bowed to the crowd before leaving the stage.

"Phoenix, that was awesome," Kori commented, flashing a 100-watt smile.

"You were great, Kori," Phoenix complimented, "You really good at acting."

"C'mon, Phoenix," Eagle said as Kori's smile subtly faded away, "Let's get out of here."

Phoenix and Phoebe followed Eagle, going to their cars.

Kori sighed, "Acting, right," she mumbled as they walked away, leaving the festival.

"That was great, Kori," Raven congratulated, locking her arms around Kori's neck, bringing her from her sudden sullen mood.

"Ass kicking job, Kori," Vic complimented.

"I agree with Vic, the job's ass was kicked by you," Rich agreed.

"Thanks Raven, Vic, Rich, I enjoy kicking ass, but I think this little stinker is less than thrilled about it," Kori nudged Gar's chin, but he still stood there, pouting.

"I've seen better," Gar claimed, sticking his nose into the air.

"Gar, would you like to get one of eyeball cupcakes that you like so much with me, I'll buy?" Kori asked, friendlily.

Gar met her eyes again, "I can't say no to that face." He smiled and locked his arm with hers, and they strolled off to one of the stands nearby.

Vic found his eyes wandering over to a group of Sophomores ogling him. They weren't half bad, not the prettiest girls in the world, but acceptable.

"Yo Rich, want to join me in charming a few desperate girls?" Vic asked.

"No thanks, Vic, maybe next time," Rich replied.

"Suit yourself," Vic waltzed over to the girls.

Raven felt someone giving her a big bear hug from behind, and when she turned to see who was evading her personal space, she saw Rich.

"Um, can I help you?" she asked, very baffled.

He released her, "We were interrupted earlier and I didn't get to do it then."

Raven smiled her rare smile to him, giving him the best gift she ever could.

"We're back!" Gar shouted, he and Kori drawing nearer to Raven and Rich, each of them with a grossly modeled cupcake.

"Gar, can you say it louder, I don't think they heard you in PUERTO RICO!" Raven yelled back, matching his tone.

Vic returned to the group, "Those girls are way too desperate, even for my liking."

"Let's get out of here, guys," Rich instructed and everybody followed him to his car.

Raven sat up front with Rich will Kori sat in the back between Vic and Gar, who spent the entire ride to Raven's house talking about how cool Rich's car was, even though they had been in it many times before.

"Goodbye, Raven," Rich gave her his million dollar sweet smile.

"See you later, Robin," Raven showed a sign of a smile on her lips as she left the vehicle.

"Sayonara, Rich," Kori said, leaving the car through the door Gar was holding for her.

"Adios, dude," Gar said, shutting the door behind Kori.

"See you Bro," Vic said, following Gar and Kori.

"Bye, guys," Richard waited until the girls disappeared inside the house, to let down his window and secretly get Vic and Gar's attention.

"Psst," he whispered, "Vic, Gar, get in, I've got an idea."

* * *

End Chapter

Ooooohhh! Please GothicPrincess, tell me what Richard is planning! *evil laughs* No! You have to wait until next time! Aren't I so nice?

Okay, a question with many answers, **What do you think Richard is planning?**

Oooohhhh! Halloween party coming up! Can you stand to wait?

Alrighty, after seeing more of our other triangle (Gar/Kori/Phoenix) **has your opinion changed?** **Who do you think Kori should be with?** I promise that this will definitely be becoming more of an issue in the future, definitely. But, again, infinite number of possibilities.

Okay, so since a lot of people complained that the chapters weren't long enough, I decided to not cut this one in half, and just give it to you all at once. And, just curious, but **if you were to cut this chapter into two, where would you end the first?**

Okay, and another thing, I felt bad about taking so long to update, so I'll just throw this out into the open for those of you who where wondering. In chapter five "The Earthquake", it says that Raven saw something in Phoenix's eyes. Don't worry, that hasn't gone away, I promise it will arise again in the future. Just for kicks, **what do you think Raven saw in Phoenix's eyes?** It could be a secret, a hidden passion, bottled up emotions, etc. The list goes on and on. So tell me what you think it is.

Steps to leave a review:

1. Press the review button  
2. Write whether you thought it was good, bad, or in between.  
3. Write the things I could improve on or you thought I did good.

4. Write your thoughts about Kori and Phoenix's scene together.

5. Write how you liked or didn't like the events of the festival.

6. Write what you thought about Raven exposing her secret.

7. Write your overall thoughts about the festival.

8. Write any questions you may have.

9. Sign the review and put a smile on my face.

Until next time, Cya.

_~GothicPrincess_

_Love unlocks doors and opens windows that weren't even there before_

_~Mignon McLaughlin_


	9. The Day To Remember Part One: Secrecy

Okay, so just read this chapter and the following, and then I will explain.

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other,  
__but looking outward together in the same direction._

_~Antoine de Saint_

_Chapter nine:** The Day To Remember Part one: Secrecy**_

* * *

"I've been thinking," Vic stared straight ahead, squatting up and down with the barbell behind his neck.

Kori contemplated from the flat weight bench over her shoulder at the sinewy teen, but continued lifting the dumbbells that she contained in her hands up to her shoulders. One at time, in a rhythmic motion, her muscles tensing and sweat rolling off of her creamy bronze skin "About?"

"Settling down," Vic replied, placing the barbell on the on the dumbbell holder above the bench press on the opposite side of Kori. He lay down underneath it, and gripped it, strategically lifting it.

Rich rose from the mat on the gym floor, and stood behind Vic on the bench press, being his spotter, "You? Settle down? Impossible."

"I can't see Vic being in a steady relationship," Kori admitted, pausing her perfect lifting to lay her upper back down on an exercise ball, and hoisted the dumbbells from her chest upward.

"Oh come on, I think I could do it," Vic concluded, not struggling one bit with the heavy weight in his grip.

"Do you even know what being in a relationship means?" Rich asked, rolling his eyes.

"Do you?" Vic countered, "From what you told me the first day you moved here, I wouldn't say you were exactly the most contained guy either."

"I am now," Rich clarified, "I know exactly what a relationship is...I think. Help me out here Kori."

Kori hopped up from the floor and placed the dumbbells on the rack, "A relationship means you are committed to that one person. Which means, you're going to have to make sacrifices in you social life," she stated, picking up a jump rope.

"Sacrifices? Like what?" Vic asked, sitting up on the bench press.

"Number one thing to remember is," she began, jumping triple time through the rapidly swinging rope, "No more whores. And no more collecting numbers, no more dancing with random chicks, no more roaming eyes, less sports related conversation with the guys..."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Rich interrupted, "Now that's just cruel, Kori." He shook his head disapprovingly, and began stretching his upper body.

"Yeah, don't even joke like that," Vic agreed.

Kori rolled her eyes and turned in a circle during her jumps, giving them the view of her back.

Vic and Rich chuckled, "There's nothing better than that feeling of pissing off a redhead," Rich joked, finishing up his upper body stretches, and sitting down on the padded floor.

"Especially one who's prancing around in half a shirt," Vic added, going back to bench pressing.

She rolled her perfect emerald eyes, "Why aren't you working out, Rich," she asked, turning around in another circle during her jumps and facing the two teens.

"First game of the season is tonight, I'm going to be working out all day," Rich replied, pulling a yard long theraband from his pocket, "I've got to be perfect, just in case a scout shows up."

"Standard procedure for a serious player," Vic explained, "I do the same thing on football days."

"You two boys put too much pressure on yourselves," Kori sympathized, "I used to be the same way about drill in Kauai." She subtly slowed her jumps before they ended altogether, and she sauntered over to the weight bench, picking up her water bottle.

"Then you know why we push ourselves," Rich pointed out, wrapping the band around his foot, and holding it tightly in his hands while pressing forward on it with his foot, ankle plantar flexion, "Because our hard work will payoff."

"That's not always true, guys," Kori disagreed, gesturing with her water bottle, "Take coach Sanders, he has awards hanging up _all over_ this school. MVP _four years straight_, district champion, state champion, best all around player, and _everything_ in between. But look at him now, nothing but an old, sweaty, wanna be jock, that pushes around these adequate high school boys, cursing them with his misery every time he's pissed."

"That, is an excellent point," Rich acknowledged, "But this is different, we have something that Coach Sanders didn't."

"And what might that be?" Kori asked, taking a swig from her water bottle, "An ego the size of Texas?"

"No," Vic replied, "It's called, psyched.."

"Psyched?" Kori raised a questioning brow.

"Psyched." Vic vaguely clarified, sitting up on the bench press, again.

"I don't think I want to know, but I'll ask," Kori gave in, sitting on the bench, "Please, somebody, fill me in, what is this "psyched"?"

"Psyched is the term we geniuses use for the seven things a truly gifted athlete must have," Rich explained, still stretching his ankles with the theraband, "Perspective. Stamina, Youth.."

"Courage, Honer, Efficiency." Vic added.

"And, of course, Dreams," Rich finished.

"Boys, boys, boys, sometimes I worry about you guys," Kori admitted, dripping with sarcasm, "And you boys just added more reasons as to why I should be utterly apprehensive about you two."

"Speaking of bitter females and dry humor," Vic insulted, "I wonder where Gar is?"

"Raven said she was going to catch a ride with him. She refused to wake up extra early with me to workout," Kori explained.

"Well, what's taking them so long?" Rich pondered and shrugs were his response.

* * *

"Have you fixed it yet?" she stared down at the pavement, tracing the bumper of the car with her foot.

Gar peered over the hood of the car at the dark teen, "Patience, oh eager one," he replied before going back to fiddling with the engine.

"You've been at it for an hour, Garfield, do you even know how to fix an engine?" she asked, restlessly, staring out over the horizon. She should have known one of Gar's "shortcuts" would land them stranded in the middle of nowhere.

"Of course, Raven," Gar halfheartedly responded, "You just..." he looked down under the hood of the car at all the complicated gears and gadgets, "Uh...You just take the doohickey and rap it around the thingamabob and this little rattler thingy starts turning..."

"Why must you be so...odd?" Raven inquired, tucking her hair behind her ear, now enjoying the view.

"Well, you know what they say," he slammed the hood of the car, "In a world of Cheerios, be a Fruit Loop," he smiled, idiotically, and joined Raven on the trunk of the car.

Raven sighed, "What are we going to do?"

"Well, I'd say we have about a couple of hours before anyone comes looking for us," Gar replied, looking at his watch, "And we're a long ways from school, and my mom would kill me if I just left the car here. So, I guess we don't have a choice. We wait."

"One can only take so much alone time with Gar," Raven mumbled.

"But in the meantime we could..." he trailed off.

Raven rolled her eyes, knowing what was coming next, and looked over at Garfield, whom was inching closer to her with his eyes closed and lips puckered out.

"Damn you, Gar," Raven put her hand in front of his face and his lips collided with it.

"I'm walking," she hopped down from the trunk and took off up the road.

"Wait!" Gar called after her, "We're miles from school!"

"I don't care, Gar," Raven stated, not even looking back at the sound of his footsteps approaching her, "I'd rather walk the miles than be stranded alone with you."

"Hold it," Gar grabbed her arm and she turned to face him, "My mom will kill me if I just leave her car," he explained, "And I can't let you go off alone with your sense of direction or lack of it. And not in this horrible city either."

"Garfield," Raven snatched her arm away and gestured over their surroundings, "Look around. There is no city! You and your "shortcut" hitched us a one-way ride to the middle of nowhere!"

"Well if you would've gotten off your lazy ass this morning and gone with Kori, you wouldn't be in this mess!" Gar shouted back.

Raven peered over his shoulder, and smirked, calmly placing her hands on her hips, "Well, Mr. Logan, if you weren't prone to screwing everything up, your mother's car wouldn't be in flames right now," she stated, raising her voice slightly.

Gar spun around and saw the old Cadillac ablaze. "No!" he clasped his hands onto his cheeks, "_I'm_.._so_.._dead_."

"Let's go," Raven grabbed his arm and they sauntered down the road.

* * *

"_Strength,"_ the word rang through his head over and over as he forced his agile body from the ninety degree angle at his elbows upward.

"_Strength,"_ his muscles tensed, sweat rolling off his face, trailing down into the crook of his neck, streaming off his shoulders, and tracing his toned biceps.

"_Strength,"_ he skillfully and rapidly flipped over onto his back, straining his abdomen muscles as he pulled himself upward, over and over again.

Never finding the strength to stop, he continued, ignoring the pain, he was too engaged with his mind unexpectedly roaming off.

_"Raven," he called her name._

_She looked back and quickened her pace as she made her way out the door, but he followed her there as well._

_She broke into a sprint, seeing that he was gaining on her, but he chased after her, matching her speed._

_"Raven, I need to talk to you," his voice became louder as he rapidly caught up to her._

_She halted in her tracks._

_She turned acutely on her heels, and he was directly behind her, merely a foot's distance between them. _

_"What? What do you want!" she demanded forcefully._

_"A chance," he replied, his voice stern but a normal tone, "Just give me a chance."_

_"No," Raven refused, sporting a scowl, "Get a few friends and get a life, you self-centered, egotistical, prissy, little spoiled brat!"_

_"You don't even know me," he pointed out, "You're being judgem-"_

"_I don't **WANT** to know you!" she screamed, and turned to leave._

_She'd barely made it out of his reach before he caused her to come to a sharp, halting stop._

_"Why are you being such a bitch?" he yelled._

_All in one motion, Raven turned back around, and stormed up to the taller teen. She took a swift, skillful swing and socked him directly in the right eye with her notorious left fist._

_He cupped his hand over his eye. Raven knew it stung, that's what her victims always yelled about her slender little fist, to her amusement, but this time, she was entirely too pissed to enjoy his pain._

_"What the hell, Raven?" he ranted, pointing an accusing finger at her, "What the fuck is your problem?"_

Richard shook his head violently, sneering his nose up at his past actions. He wasn't the same guy as he was then. He'd changed so much just from a good knock in the head from the girl he was infatuated with, whom he _still_ is infatuated with.

He hopped up off the floor, rubbing his abdomen as he made his way over to the dumbbell rack.

"_Strength"_ it echoed through his ears, reminding him to look past the two pound dumbbells, _"Five, eight, ten, twelve, fifteen, eighteen...twenty...Strength."_ He lifted the set of twenty pound dumbbells and jogged over to the bench press, taking a seat on the end of it.

He began pulling the loads up over his shoulders, one at a time, and back down again, in rhythmic motion.

Sweat poured off his body and his heart pounded, and yet, he managed to continue breathing through his nose.

"_Strength. Strength."_ He reminded himself, but, he found his thoughts meandering from the start of the soccer season that afternoon, to the goddess whom had been stuck in his brain since he laid eyes on her, but never this much.

His stormy blue eyes observed the exercise room become the school hallway, exactly the way he remembered, and he saw himself standing there, his soccer bag over his shoulder, his school things in his hands, and wearing his white sweats and Pumas. And coming out of a nearby classroom was just the girl who he was itching to see...

_"Raven-"_

_"No, Grayson, I don't want to hear it," Raven denied and continued walking down the hallway away from him. She knew he was bound to come after her eventually, but she didn't know that they would be the only two in the hallway when he did._

_"Please, I'm begging you, just listen," he pleaded, running after her._

_Raven stopped sharply and turned and faced the teen who was but a foot from her, "What?" she hissed, glaring daggers._

_"Why won't you just talk to me?" he inquired, his sparkling blue eyes glazed over with hurt, one of which had a dark red mark underneath it from the incident a few days prior._

_"I...do...not...like...you," Raven drawled, a vein pulsating in her forehead. She grabbed all the papers, folders, and books that he was holding in his hands, and threw them on the floor by his feet. She turned, rolling her eyes, and stormed off._

_He knelt to the ground, picking up his things, and losing all hope that she would ever accept him, and then he heard her footsteps lighten and slow. He looked up to see her turning around, and coming back._

_As she neared him, he looked back down at the floor, expecting for her to punch him in the eye again, not to do what she did. Raven got down on her knees in front of him, and began to help him pick up his things._

_He gazed at her in disbelief. This girl, the one that despised him so, was she actually being nice to him? Or was it an act? He wasn't very sure at the moment; he was still in shock and wasn't able to think straight. But, he knew his eyes weren't deceiving him; this was really happening._

_"Sorry," Raven apologized, still not looking up at him, not ready to give up her pride just yet._

_Rich snapped out of his daze, not at the sound of her voice, but the word she spoke. Not only was Raven being nice, but she was apologizing. Okay, he was finding this a little hard to believe._

_Raven picked up one of his things that wasn't completely strewn out all over the floor, "I didn't mean to-"_

_"It's fine," Rich interrupted her, afraid that he would loose his sanity if she continued, "You're not the first per...well, yeah you are the first person. But it's cool, no need to apologize."_

_Raven looked up at him and noticed how dark the red mark was underneath his eye. She hit him a lot harder than she thought she did, and a lot harder than she intended to. "Your eye."_

_"No, it makes me look tough cause I tell everyone it was a soccer accident." Rich only told that to Riley, but he was hoping to stifle a laugh from her. But he only received a slight curve of her lip, which was disappointing._

_Raven broke the eye contact that she had with Richard, and looked down at what she was picking up. _

_He stared at Raven, noticing every one of her naturally flawless features. She was truly beautiful. She was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, and something about her aroused him. Something about Raven lured him in. Something about her made him want to delve deeper into her, and get to know her. Something, that he just couldn't quite put his finger on._

_"Did you draw this?" Raven inquired, her voice brought him out of his daze and he stopped admiring her beauty for the time being._

_He looked down at the drawing in her hand, "Yea."_

_"Who is this lady?" Raven asked._

_"That's my mother," he replied, also admiring the sketch, "Beautiful, isn't she?"_

_"She's gorgeous," Raven agreed, uncomfortable that Rich was getting closer to her. She shifted her eyes from the drawing of Richard's mother, to a lot more drawings that were within the pile of papers._

_She flipped through them. She saw sketches of many more gorgeous woman, of cars, of graffiti, of roses and skulls, and all sorts of things. "You're really good," Raven complimented, "...Although, you probably don't need me telling you that. Your dad probably bought you a museum to put all your drawings in." Raven tucked her hair behind her ear as she continued examining the sketches._

_"No," Rich informed her, smiling, "He and his fiancee don't really pay that much attention to them. They're too busy being proud of my twin brother, Riley. But it's no big deal."_

_Raven looked up at him to see that he had situated himself beside her instead of in front of her like before. She slowly nodded at the information he'd just given her and he noticed how she slowly inched away from him._

_Raven went back to flipping through the drawings, and she came across one of a young woman, around her age. She was standing alone in a meadow, only accompanied by a dove that rested on her extended slender wrist beside her heart shaped face. The girl had a widows peak, with short tresses of shaded black hair, and she was a little short for her age. She was clad in a long sleeve shirt, a vest, and shorts. But Raven realized who the girl was when she laid eyes on a pair of combat boots that she knew all too well._

_"Is...is this me?" Raven inquired, and he jumped a little when she spoke._

_He looked in her hands at the sketch she held, "Uh...yea, it is you." He was afraid of how Raven would react if he told her that he actually sits around thinking about her and drawing pictures of her. But he was surprised when she didn't blow her top, instead, she just continued looking at the picture, tucking her hair behind her ear._

_"No...I don't do her justice," Raven slightly shook her head no, "She's way too beautiful."_

_"No, the picture doesn't do you justice," Rich disagreed, "You're beautiful Raven. If you weren't, I wouldn't have had the muse to draw you."_

_He watched as she seemed to quiver in fear underneath his gaze._

_"Well, I have to get back to class," she quickly handed Rich his things before getting back up on her feet and walking off._

_"Wait," he called after her, "So...are we friends?"_

_Raven turned and faced him, sporting a smirk, "Don't push your luck, Grayson."_

Rich smiled, remembering how wonderful it felt to be on her good side. And remembering the reason that he stuck around.

He allowed himself a few more reps before jumping up and fetching his soccer ball from his bag.

"_Skill,"_ the word penetrated his mind as he began his drills with the ball, bouncing it from his foot to his elbow, ricocheting it from his head back to his foot, and dribbling it with his feet around the perimeter of the lengthy gym.

"_Skill."_ His eyes were glued to the soccer ball, but the sight of it made the memory come flooding back. The padded floor of the room became smooth soft grass on which a gorgeous little bird lay, himself standing over her as he bent over to pick up the soccer ball.

"_Whatever, Grayson." Raven rolled her eyes, getting herself up from the ground._

"_Whatever, Roth," he smirked, "How's about a game of soccer sometime?" he kicked the ball into the air and caught it behind his back._

"_I don't want to play soccer," she refused, stopping on the sidewalk._

"_Does a certain little Roth girl need another visit from the tickle monster?" he warned, threateningly moving his wiggling fingers closer to her._

"_Fine," she rolled her eyes at his smirking face, "Another day." she decided after looking around and seeing that the sun was starting to set._

"_You really should be getting home," he read her mind, and they turned around back towards Raven's house._

_Almost instantly, he and Raven appeared in her backyard, Raven with a handful of rocks, pegging her own window._

_Kori opened the window to Raven's bedroom, but Rich watched as she continued throwing rocks and one hit Kori right between the eyes._

"_Ouch, Raven," Kori rubbed where the rock had just struck her, "You hit me with a rock."_

"_And you pushed me out of a window," Raven let the rocks fall from her hand, "We're nowhere near even."_

_Richard chuckled and he knelt down so that Raven could climb onto his shoulders, "Oh yeah, Raven," he remembered as he stood with her on his shoulders, "So, after the ceremony for my dad's knew COO, he's having a gala at our house. And I was wondering if you could go with me?"_

_Kori leaned out of the window and reached for Raven, who clasped onto her hands. He moved Raven's leg's off of his shoulders and pushed her up by the feet, further towards Kori, who pulled Raven up to where she was sitting on the window sill, her legs dangling outside the house._

"_It's not as bad as it seems. A gala is just a party filled with nicely dressed rich people. And I'm sick of having to dance with my brother since the girls there are either way too old or way too young. So, will you come with me?" _

_Raven gave him a smile, "Like a date?" she asked, swinging one of her legs inside her room._

"_No, no, no, no, no," he shook his head, "It's just friends...hanging out. Completely innocent. And besides, you're just doing me a favor so my date won't be Riley...again."_

_Raven climbed all the way in her window, and sat on her knees, still visible to him._

_She gave him a sweet, genuine smile, "Goodnight, Grayson," and with that, and the smile still on her face, she shut her window._

Rich came out of his thoughts just in time to prevent himself from tripping over the bench press. He violently shook his head, and kicked the ball up to his elbow, allowing himself time to jog away from the rest of the exercise equipment.

"_Skill."_ He reminded himself, continuing to proficiently dribble the ball, and ran a hand through his moist spiky hair, trying to stay focused.

* * *

"Finally," Raven sighed, throwing herself into Vic's arms, "Civilization."

"Whoa," Vic chuckled, "It's lunch, what happened?"

Raven clenched his shirt in her fist and slowly turned her head towards the approaching figure of Gar behind her, "He took a one-way trip to _stupid's_ ville; population, him."

Kori stood up from the lunch table and pried Raven's hands from Vic's shirt, "Calm down, Raven. Gar isn't that bad."

"Yeah, I'm not," Gar pouted, crossing his arms and pouncing down into a seat at the lunch table.

"No, Vic, you should receive an Olympians gold medal for putting up with him," Raven admitted, sitting one chair away from Gar.

"Now, now you two," Vic took the seat between them, "Tell Dr. Vic what happened."

"Gar got us stranded miles away with one of his "sure-fire" shortcuts," Raven explained.

"I've been punished alright," Gar added, "Dudes, my mom's car burst into flames. She's going to kill me. And it will not be done mercifully."

"Serves you right, Jerk." Raven pouted.

"I swear you two have more fights in a day than the UFC has in a year," Kori rolled her eyes, "It's ridiculous."

Raven mutely nodded and she looked around at the surrounding teens. There was the redhead, the bulky pigskin chaser, the string bean, and the bubbly blonde was still on vacation; only three. "Someone's missing," she noted, "Where's Robin?"

The bell sounded, "Oh, I wouldn't bother him if I were you," Vic replied, slinging his bag over his shoulder as he stood from the table, "His first game is tonight, and he's busier than a cat trying to bury shit on a marble floor."

* * *

Richard threw his towel over his shoulder after wiping his damp face, and took a swig of water. His workout had gone on and on for the passed few hours, Raven continuously waltzing her way into his mind with every exercise. But other than that, his workout had been excellent, and a quick run on the treadmill sounded like the perfect way to end it.

He hopped on the machine and turned it up to a steady pace, nearly worn out from the exercises prior to this one.

"_Speed_," the next word rang through his ears.

He turned the treadmill up a few more levels, now he was running in a quick jog too slow to be called a run.

"_Speed_," his mind prompted him, and he turned the treadmill up another few levels, up to a run now.

"_Speed!_" the word penetrated his mind, a lot more forcefully, and he turned the treadmill up more than a few levels, and was now in a full sprint.

"Speed," the word slipped from his lips in a whisper, "Speed."

He was trying to stay focused for the last few minutes of training. He needed his focus. It was vital for a win, but with that girl popping up in his mind every few minutes, there was no way he'd be able to focus enough to bring home a win.

And, again, the beautiful girl easily broke through the weak fortress of his mind, and there she was again.

_He wordlessly drew nearer to her figure atop the hay bales. Her back and stomach moved rhythmically to her quick, deep breaths. Her smooth deep black hair flapped in the wind behind her. And she was unaware of him approaching._

_He stopped a short distance from her, just watching as she held that panda bear close to her, and stroked it's fur, gaining some sort of comfort from it. And he wondered why Raven was so elusive, so obscure. Why wouldn't she just let him hold her? Couldn't she see how much he longed for her to let him?_

_He mutely said something, and startled, she sharply turned her head and caught sight of him, before turning her face away once more._

_Her lips moved, trying to dismiss him, but he took a seat next to her on the hay bail and she scooted away, refusing to allow him a single moments pleasure to delve into those crystal clear pools of violet._

_He told his story inaudibly, and then he waited a moment before looking over at her, and she was staring at him with the most incredible look in her eyes that he'd ever had the pleasure of seeing._

The memory faded away and Rich came back to reality, "Speed," he spoke aloud.

But as quickly as that memory faded to black, another came and stole away his mind. He had no choice but to relive the day at his father's gala...

_They found themselves in the middle of the ballroom dancing the famous salsa along with the rest of the frolicking couples._

_And when that dance ended, they were panting, and in dire need of a break. She turned away from him and started to walk off, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her back toward him as the next song began to play. The Argentine Tango, his specialty._

_He broke the out into the Salida, the opening moves and, to his astonishment, so did she. She grinned at the surprised expression on his face and they continued with the sensual dance._

_She easily followed his lead, even though he was simply improvising, which is why the Argentine Tango is a complicated dance._

_He tried to throw her off by throwing her trick steps or really hard ones to follow, but she was not phased. Every move he made, she countered it, no matter how perplexing it was._

_A few minutes later, the music and the dance came to its halting stop, and the two's final pose was full of tension. Her right leg was lifted and laced around his left leg. His hands hand moved to her lower back, and their faces were an inch apart and their lustful breaths were one._

Not only had Rich seen the memory, but he could feel it. He felt her body pressed against his, her soft skin as he ran his fingers over it.

Richard clenched his eyes shut and griped the bars on the treadmill harder, "Speed." he said aloud.

But again, his memories of her were too powerful, and he couldn't stop his eyes as that gala came flashing before them again.

_He lifted his hand and moved a few loose strands of hair from her porcelain face. Her skin was like silk underneath his fingers._

"_Enough chit chat Grayson," she spoke and stepped back, taking his sketch books and putting them on the table, "Let's have it out on the dance floor. Unless, you're not man enough to dance."_

_She circled around him, they had now traded places with her being the predator and himself being the cornered prey. He watched her as she slightly squinted her eyes and lifted her eyebrow, proposing a challenge. One of which he accepted by taking her hand and leading her onto the dance floor, where the room was now dancing the classic modern waltz._

"Speed!" he yelled this time, "Speed!" and clenched his teeth and shut his eyes, but she was in his mind.

_They ran through the festival hand in hand, she, leading the way._

_She turned her head and he laid eyes on the rarest smile in the world, the most beautiful, stunning smile he'd ever had the pleasure of seeing. He felt like the luckiest man on the planet because she chose him to share it with._

"Focus!" he demanded, still sprinting on the treadmill, "Speed!"

_He filled the distance between them, dropping his soccer ball, and he began to tickle her all over -or at least in every place that's appropriate for friends._

_She fought him at first, but then, his fingers wiggling all over her began to be too much to fight off. She couldn't hold in her laughter, and she let her mind take over. She fell into a fits of laughter. Her laugh sounded in his ears like chiming bells. And it echoed through the dryly cold street, and bounced off of everything around them. He grabbed her and pulled them both over on the ground, and continued to tickle her._

"Damn it! Speed!" Rich exclaimed, turning the treadmill to it's limit and running as if Satan was behind him.

_They pulled apart and he took her hand of silk into his and caressed her knuckles with his thumb._

_She just stared at him and their smiles slowly faded away._

_And then, time seemed to stop, and the world became theirs. Without a care in the world, she allowed her eyes to flutter closed, and him, his dreams becoming reality, copied her notions, and slowly pulled her closer to him. She allowed him, she allowed herself to inch toward the teen whom she desired the most at the moment._

_Closer and closer they became, so close that their open mouths were but an inch apart. Their warm breath that contrasted with the cold air to become a visible smoky substance combined together._

_Passion burned, Lust flared, and Desire blazed all in the heat of this intense moment._

_But, suddenly, time resumed, the fire was suffocated, and reality came flying back. And she realized what was happening, and she stopped herself just as her lips nearly locked with his._

"Get out of my head!" Richard shouted.

_He gazed across the lot upon a porcelain doll clad in sexy black attire. In all his years he'd never seen something so beautiful, so alluring. She was so enticing, with a plain look plastered on her face, and strange features. Never, never, had he seen anything like her before, and he instantly wanted her._

Richard slammed his hand on the stop button, and he came to an abrupt halt on the machine. He clutched onto the bars and stared straight ahead, his deep, sharp breaths the only sound in the room. What has happening?

* * *

Continue chapter

* * *

_Absence diminishes small loves and increases great ones,  
__as the wind blows out the candle but fans the bonfire._

_~Francois Duc de La Rochecoucauld_


	10. The Day To Remember Part Two: Revelation

Okay, so here's the reason for the freakishly long update. About a month ago, my laptop totally crashed, but thank goodness I'd had everything backed up on my flash drive. But, it took like three weeks for it to be repaired, but even then, it still wasn't fully functional, so, it took about another couple of weeks for it to be fixed. And then, there was issue with the place I got my laptop from, so, I totally had to go to a different place and get a new, different, and better one. And thank goodness for my flash drive. So, there you have it.

And another heads up, I'm rewriting Jump City High and Challenge Day, so keep a lookout for that, and on top of everything else, I have two plot bunnies, one of which I've already put into action with a partially finished plot and first chapter.

Alrighty, now, thank you guys for the reviews, and please enjoy the rest of this chapter.

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans

Summary: AU Love, like war, is easy to begin, but hard to stop. Raven's life had never been easy, but things take an unexpected twist when she meets the arrogant new kid, Richard Grayson.

* * *

_For you see, each day I love you more today,  
__more than yesterday, and less than tomorrow._

_~Rosemonde Gerard_

_Chapter ten: **The Day To Remember Part Two: Revelation**_

* * *

_Previously: Richard slammed his hand on the stop button, and he came to an abrupt halt on the machine. He clutched onto the bars and stared straight ahead, his deep, sharp breaths the only sound in the room. What has happening?_

* * *

Vic entered the room alone, "Come on bro, it's almost time," he spoke.

Richard looked up at him, and Vic had a questioning look on his face, "You alright, Rich?"

Rich cleared his throat, "Uh, yeah," he climbed off the treadmill and began gathering his things.

"You got something on your mind?" Vic inquired, tossing Rich his soccer ball.

"Yeah," Rich replied, stuffing everything in his soccer bag, "It needs a condom."

Vic raised a brow quizzically, "Care to elaborate?"

"I'm being mind fucked," Rich wiped his face again.

"Mind fucked?"

"She's fucking with my mind," Rich gave him a knowing look.

"And by "She" you mean Raven," Vic added.

"I can't stop thinking about her, bro, she just, won't get out of my head," Rich explained, "I don't know what's happening."

"Just admit it, dude, you've been stuck with Cupid's arrow right in the ass," Vic pointed out.

"Don't kid yourself. I've known Raven for what, a few weeks? There's no way," Rich denied.

"Well, there's such a thing as infatuation," Vic offered, "Don't worry, dude, your mind will be back in it's dry spell pretty soon, Raven won't stick around too long."

"What do you mean?"

"I've known Rae going on five years, and she's had one boyfriend," Vic explained.

"What are you getting at? Raven's gorgeous and she's got a great personality, she can get a guy just as easily as I can get a girl."

"Yes, she has all of that, but Raven isn't the type to make a commitment," Vic explicated.

"Neither am I," Rich admitted, glancing up at the clock, "We'd better hurry, just let me shower and I'll meet you guys there."

"Alright, dude, don't be late," Vic warned before leaving the room.

* * *

Kori plopped down on Raven's bed beside her, "So," she began, "What would you like for your seventeenth birthday?"

"Nothing," Raven replied, delving deeper into her book, _Cryers Cross_, "To watch Phoebe trick-or-treat and see her smiling face. That's all."

"No party, no dancing, no alcohol, no kinky birthday sex?" Kori inquired, dripping with sarcasm.

"I don't party, dancing is overrated, I don't drink, and I'm practicing abstinence," Raven replied, not even looking up from her book.

"You're not the type to let loose, are you?" Kori stated, rather that asked, and Raven mutely nodded.

Kori sighed, stood up, and went over to the vanity, primping herself.

"Are you going somewhere?" Raven asked, not even glancing up.

Kori chuckled, "Nope, why would I leave when everything I want is here?"

Raven rolled her eyes and the doorbell sounded, "That will be Vic, he left his lucky shoelaces here yesterday," she stated, shutting her book and hopping down from the bed, "I'll give them to him, I need to ask him about a quiz in English."

She walked out into the hallway, "I've got it," she said loudly enough for her brothers and sister to hear, and she trudged down the stairs, and grabbed Vic's laces before heading over to the door.

"What lesson is the quiz over..." she began as she opened the door, but trailed off when she saw that it wasn't Vic standing there on the stoop.

She froze solid and the shoelaces fell from her hand. Her heart stopped as did time.

It was like she was dreaming, but soon she would wake and find that her imagination was just taking on a mind of its own, but, even in her wildest dreams, she could never imagine what was standing right in front of her. Before her own eyes, it was there, and even with the proof, she couldn't believe it.

She studied the man. His features were upturned in a genuine smile of straight white teeth. His eyes gleamed with true happiness over the most gorgeous jade green eyes that not even Phoenix's could compare to. His hair, thin, short, perfectly trimmed, and jet black was slightly receding with age. And his skin was pale, but not nearly as pale as the Roth children.

He stood well over six feet and his shoulders were broad and the rest of his body was toned and hefty, just as she remembered. And he wore navy blue slacks with a white collared shirt and a white naval hat sat proudly atop his head.

Raven blinked a few times, but the heavenly figure still stood before her. And finally, she had to accept it. It was really happening.

"D..Dad?..." she asked unsure, "Daddy?" The man's smile grew wide as he opened his arms to her.

Her face turned into a teeth flashing smile and she ran and literally jumped in his arms, hugging his neck.

He held her tight as he spun her around, lifting her off of her feet, "Oh how you've grown," he said, his voice muffled because his face was buried in her hair.

"That's what happens when you don't see someone in two years, Dad," Raven was on the verge of tears as he put her back onto her own feet, but contained them.

His smile never faded as he took a step back and looked at his once little girl, "You look so much like your mother," he stroked his hand over her cheek.

"I missed you, Dad," she shut her eyes, soaking up the situation.

"I've missed you too, Raven," he pulled her into his embrace once more in a warm, loving, and heart-filled hug.

"Let's get out of this weather, Dad," Raven mumbled into his chest, even though she'd rather stay in his arms for the rest of her life, but she pulled away and they went inside.

"Where are my boys?" Trevor spoke loud enough so that his voice carried upstairs, and Phoenix and Eagle came parading down the stairs, Phoenix with a truly authentic smile about his face, and Eagle with a tinge of happiness that not even he could hide.

"Dad," Phoenix said before wrapping his arms around his father, "Good to see you." He pulled away and Eagle shook his father's hand, and his father pulled him into a hug, "Welcome back, Commander," Eagle managed to say with only a slight hint of joyfulness.

"No, Admiral," Trevor corrected, "I moved up a few months ago."

"Congratulations."

"Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" Phoebe came bouncing down the stairs and her father knelt down at the bottom of the staircase and she collided with him, wrapping her arms around his neck. A picture perfect moment.

Raven looked up at her brothers, they didn't seem as surprised as she and Phoebe were, but then again, they were older and apart of the "I'm male and can't show too much emotion" species.

Raven folded her arms, as if she couldn't stand without grasping onto something, and Phoenix rubbed her back, "Feebs, why are you crying?"

Trevor stood with Phoebe in his arms, she, with her hands clasped over her face, sobbing, "Because I'm happy," she cried.

Trevor smiled and patted her back, and a gorgeous redhead came waltzing down the stairs, not even she seemed to be surprised to Raven.

"Mr. Roth," she held out her hand to the man, "I'm..."

"You must be Kori," he finished, taking her hand and shaking it, "Phoenix told me all about you in a letter," he turned with Phoebe resting on his chest and gestured towards his second eldest son.

"He did?" Kori inquired, glowing with a little too much excitement, and cleared her throat when she received suspicious looks, "I mean, that was nice of him," she laughed nervously, her cheeks growing crimson, and playfully nudged his shoulder.

"I almost forgot," Trevor voiced, passing Phoebe to Eagle, "I brought you all presents."

"From Coronado?" Raven inquired, her stomach becoming butterflies.

"I've been well outside Coronado, Benz," her father answered, smiling his signature smile that they always saw before something good happened. He opened up his suitcase on the floor and began rummaging around in it.

Raven smiled at the sound of that name; the name her father and only her father called her. And him using that name to address her brought back so many good memories.

"Here you are," Trevor distributed four black velvet jewelry boxes to his children, "Matching necklaces from Greece."

They each opened their own box and revealed a chained necklace with a single, silver, pendant in the shape of a right bird wing.

"Thanks," they all said simultaneously.

"And for my birthday girl," Trevor continued, "A rare jeweled belt from Italy."

"Thank you," Raven smiled when he placed the belt into her hands. The reddest rubies the earth could produce were outlined and linked together with gold to make a stunning belt.

"Her birthday isn't until tomorrow, Admiral," Eagle pointed out.

"I know," Trevor replied, "It's an early birthday present, Eagle. But on the other hand, I also have something for Kori, who is, as Phoenix said, the newest addition to this family."

He placed a jewelry box in her hand, and she opened it to reveal a pair of diamond studs, "Thank you, Mr. Roth."

"You're welcome, Kori, now come, gather around, I have many things to tell you all."

* * *

Raven sat back in the recliner, listening to the soothing sound of her father's voice telling one of his many suspenseful stories about the field. Her brothers sat on the couch across from him, listening with great interest while Phoebe sat on his lap, her head laying on his chest, and Kori sat next to him, heeding with the same occupied look on her face as Raven's brothers.

Raven watched her father, just as she had since he stepped through the door. He told his story with so much thought; the way only he could.

Before she had a chance to fall into remembrance of her father's stories prior to this one, there was another knock at the door.

No one even looked up, so she got up to answer it, not minding, while her father continued telling his story. She opened the door, smiling her incredible smile, and she was met by a bright camera flash followed by the faces of Rich, Vic, and Gar.

"What the?" she let go of the door and rubbed her eyes and then looked up at them. Each of them with a grin of anticipation and mischief.

"You know," she stated, rather than asked, and shifted her weight to her left side.

"Yep," Rich shoved his camera into his pocket, "And now we have the most bona fide and world's rarest smile on camera," he grinned, "Happy early birthday, Raven."

Vic and Gar looked back and forth at each other, "Surprise!" they shouted.

Raven smirked at them and crossed her arms over her chest, shifting her eyes from each of their innocent faces.

She sighed and smiled, "I love you guys," she walked into the middle of the much taller teens and they engaged in a group hug.

Vic and Gar ran passed her and piled on top of Trevor as if he was their father, while Richard stepped forward and Raven put her hand in front of him, stopping him. She stepped out on the stoop and closed the door behind her.

"Explain to me, because, honestly, I don't understand," she admitted, leading him a little distance from the door.

"You see, when you make a few phone calls and send a few e-mails from Wayne Enterprises, you tend to get more than pleasing replies," he shrugged, leaning back on the guardrail.

"No, not that," she replied, walking over and resting on the rail beside him, "Why do you do things like this for me?"

"Well," he thought about it, "Because you're special. And I'd do anything _just_ to make you smile," He looked over at her and she was blushing.

"Thanks," she said, tucking her hair behind her ear, smiling, and looking down at her feet, "You say that to a lot of girls. But that's fine; I get it. You can't help yourself." She ran her hand over her arm, and glanced his way, but went back to staring at the ground.

Richard chuckled, "No, I don't. Before I moved here, before I met you, I was too proud to do things like I do for you for other girls. They meant nothing more than a voice to hear during times of loneliness or boredom. And to be honest, I haven't noticed a single girl since I met you," he sighed, "I'll admit it; I'm whipped."

Raven looked up at him, his eyes were filled with humorous sincerity. She smiled, "Would you like to come inside and meet my father?"

"I've already met him. Vic, Gar, and I picked him up from the airport," Rich replied, "And I need to go, my game starts in ten minutes." He looked at his wristwatch and then back down at Raven, who was a lot shorter than he was.

Raven looked up at him, realizing how much she loved those stormy blue eyes. Her eyes then trailed downward; he was wearing cleats and black sweats over his soccer uniform. He looked very attractive in black, especially with his tan skin and toned body.

"Well, good luck," she tore her eyes upward and met his, "And...you look good."

"Thanks," he chuckled, "Have fun with your father."

"I will," she stood from the rail, "And, thanks, Robin, this really means a lot to me."

"You're welcome, Raven," she gave him a smile, and he gave her one to keep in her heart. He pushed off of the rail and she reached for the doorknob, but stopped.

"Hey, Robin," she removed her hand from the knob and went over to him and he leaned against the rail again.

"Yes, Raven."

She cleared her throat, nervous, "Um..." she sighed, "You made today the best day of my life," she looked up at him, and his brilliant eyes made her lose her mind. She didn't have to think of what to say, her heart told her mouth, "And, I can honestly say, that turning around and giving you a chance that day in the hall, was the best thing I ever could have done. I will never regret being friends with you, Richard Grayson."

He didn't smile, he couldn't, he just watched her with a cloud of lust over his eyes.

She moved closer to him and placed a gentle, warm kiss on his cheek, burning it with passion.

He slowly stood from the guardrail and tardily wrapped his arms around the fragile girl. She lay her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat; it was in sync with hers. A small, meaningful smile spread on her lips, "Thank you, Richard."

"Happy birthday, Raven," he slowly released her and watched as she went back inside.

"Happy b-day, Little Rae," Vic hugged her before running from the room to leave with Rich.

"Happy seventeenth, Ravester," Gar also hugged her, "Don't have too much fun you crazy kid," he called over his shoulder, leaving the house as well.

Raven sighed and Kori stood from the couch, "I've got to take a shower," she said, "Excuse me."

Raven took her seat and she and her siblings continued listening to their father's everlasting words.

* * *

Kori waltzed back down the stairs after showering, expecting to be able to hear yet another exciting story, but sadly, she wouldn't be hearing another story after all. Trevor Roth lay asleep on the couch, Phoebe cuddled up on his right shoulder, with Eagle peacefully sleeping behind her. And Raven lay on his left side, her head falling on his chest, with Phoenix snuggled up behind her.

Kori smiled and she just placed her hand over her heart and turned and disappeared upstairs. Leaving the salvaged Roth children with their long awaited father, whom had finally arrived.

* * *

End chapter

So, my dear readers, how did you like this chapter? Was it as good as you hoped? Okay, major event in this chapter. Rich brought Raven's father home to her, but only for a little while. But still, that's like amazing right there.

Okay, so I know everybody is like c'mon, where's the action. Well here you go, **the next chapter is the most anticipated chapter yet**, I've been itching to right it since I thought of this story. So hold on and be patient, I promise it will be worth it.

And another thing, I totally had to split this chapter in half because, well, I didn't want people fainting and having aneurisms when they saw the length, so you're welcome.

Steps to leave a review:

1. Press the review button.  
2. Write whether you thought it was good, bad, or in between.  
3. Write the things I could improve on or you thought I did good.  
4. Write your thoughts about Rich's infatuation.  
5. Write your thoughts about Rich bringing Raven's father home.  
6. Write your how you feel about Raven's confrontation with Rich.  
7. Write your overall thoughts about the chapter.  
8. Write any questions you might have.  
9. Sign the review.  
10. Press the submit review button and put a smile on my face.

_~GothicPrincess_

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_Love is a symbol of eternity. It wipes out all sense of time,  
__destroying all memory of a beginning and all fear of an end._

_~Unknown_


End file.
